Eclipse of the Heart
by FadedPhantom
Summary: Aila's life on Earth had always seemed normal. However, when she suddenly finds herself stranded in a world she thought only existed in a game, she becomes a part of an adventure that is anything but ordinary. During KH2.
1. Beginnings

Hello

Hello! Wow, I haven't posted a story in years... but, seeing as this is the _longest summer ever_ (I don't leave for college for a few more weeks), I've finally had the time to sit down and write. This is the result.

This story takes place during (and a little before) Kingdom Hearts II, but I've added an OC to the mix. I know a lot of people don't really like OCs, but personally I really like stories with OCs, as long as they're well written. But, if you don't like it, then just click the little back button and find something else to read.

However, if you _do_ happen to like stories with OCs, _please_ give this one a chance! I kind of suck at writing beginnings, so these first couple chapters might be a bit rocky, but I promise it will get better :)

Anyways, I'll stop rambling now... Let's begin!

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or Disney. I do, however, own Aila and her family.

_You see things;_

_And you say, 'Why?'_

_But I dream things_

_That never were;_

_And I say, 'Why not?'_

_George Bernard Shaw_

**Chapter 1: Beginnings**

"Remember to keep all the doors locked at night. And the windows. And don't open the door without seeing who it is first, and don't go wandering around by yourself after dark, and… Are you listening to me?"

Aila sighed. "Yes, mom. Lock doors, don't talk to strangers, yada yada yada. Honestly, this is all really common sense stuff."

Anna ignored Aila's comment and continued on telling her daughter things that she already knew. Her parents were going out of town for a while and this would be her first time home alone for a substantial period of time. So, naturally, her mother worried, as mothers do. Aila shook her head, sighing again. "Mom, I'll be _fine_. I'm not a kid you know."

"You're fourteen," her mother said with a frown.

"And besides," Aila continued, pretending not to have heard the last comment, "Lisa's gonna be checking in on me like every two seconds anyways, right?"

"That's true," her mother mused, looking slightly more relaxed as she remembered the family friend that had 'volunteered' to check on her daughter every so often.

"Anna, she'll be fine." Aila turned to smile at her father, who winked at her. He finished carrying the final suitcase out the door before turning back to look at his wife and daughter. "What's she gonna do, throw some wild party or something?" The three of them laughed, though Aila had a sneaking suspicion that that was her father's way of warning her not to attempt anything of the sort.

"All right," Anna sighed, having calmed down a bit. "Just… call us if you need anything, okay?"

"Will do," Aila said, giving a two-fingered salute. Anna smiled before pulling her daughter into a tight hug, which Aila returned.

"Come on, Ann! We're gonna hit traffic!" John called, trying to figure out how to close the trunk with all their stuff smashed inside. Anna gave Aila one last squeeze before making her way to the car, Aila following close behind. She made her way to her father, who had just forced the trunk closed and was grinning triumphantly. "See ya later, Ailagator," he joked, giving his daughter a hug as well. Aila rolled her eyes at the nickname as she hugged him back. John then made his way to the driver's side, Anne already in the passenger's seat, while Aila turned to head back to the front door, stopping just in front of it and facing the car again.

"You be good!" Her mother called with a smile as her father started the car.

"I will," Aila replied happily with a small wave. The three shouted goodbyes as the car pulled away, leaving Aila standing in front of her house, alone.

Alone…

"YES!" she shouted, pumping a fist in the air. She rushed into the house, slamming the door behind her with a goofy grin plastered on her face. "I'm home alone, I'm home alone!" she sang, skipping happily into the kitchen to grab something to eat. She then collapsed onto the couch, grabbing the remote and ripping into a new bag of Oreos. Munching happily, she turned on the TV and waited for the picture to appear.

When it finally did, she paused, a cookie raised halfway to her mouth. She raised an eyebrow curiously, staring at the three figures walking in place: a boy with spiky brown hair, a small white duck, and a tall dog.

"Kingdom Hearts?" she questioned, recognizing the menu screen. 'That's odd,' she thought. 'Didn't know Alex liked that game…' Her nine-year-old sister, Alex, had left for camp that morning. Apparently she had woken up extra early to get in some last minute gaming before she left.

Usually, Aila would assume that it had been her older brother, Danny, who had grown to love the game after some initial… persuasion… from Aila to give it a try. But he had been on some trip with his friends for the past few days, so naturally the only other person it could have been was Alex, despite the fact that she wasn't necessarily into video games, a trait which both Aila and Danny had tried time and again to remedy.

"Maybe she finally realized how awesome it is, and she's just too proud to admit it," Aila mused with a smirk. Sniggering at the thought of her little sister trying to sneakily play a video game, Aila bent down in front of the console, finger over the power button. She hesitated, looking from the case of Kingdom Hearts II to the menu currently on the TV. If her sister really _did_ like the game, then it would be rather mean to just turn it off. What if she hadn't saved recently? Sighing, Aila lowered her hand and stood up, shaking her head.

Looking to her left hand, the one she had placed on the floor, she found it to be covered in a thin layer of dust. "Gross," she muttered, making a face. It had been Danny's job to clean the floors before he left, and he obviously had avoided the task. She quickly made her way to the bathroom, sending her brother bad vibes all the way and hoping that he had to clean a lot on his trip.

As she dried her newly washed hands, Aila caught sight of her reflection in the bathroom mirror. A rather short, thin girl stared back at her, wearing a simple black tank top and dark blue jeans, along with her usual black and blue sneakers; she rarely took them off even if she was just hanging around the house, as she was today. Her long, jet-black hair was pulled into its usual ponytail, a few shorter, loose strands hanging in her face. Her blue eyes shone brightly, and she frowned, the lights flickering momentarily as if sensing her agitation.

Her eyes had always bothered her. They were such a bright blue that people always tended to assume that she wore colored contacts or something, which she didn't. Her siblings had the same shockingly blue eyes, the three of them forced to endure many strange looks because of it, becoming outsiders at the orphanage they'd once called home. Even adults seemed to avoid them, and it hadn't been until about five years ago that Anna and John had finally adopted them, saying that those kinds of differences just made them all the more special. Aila sighed and turned away from the mirror. 'Being different sucks.'

Walking back into the kitchen, she found some money and a note she had neglected to notice before resting on the counter.

_Aila_

_Just wanted to remind you to clean the house up a bit tonight so it looks nice for Lisa. I've left your allowance here for you, so just consider this your one big chore while we're gone. Don't procrastinate!_

_Love you,_

_Mom_

Aila groaned. It wasn't like Lisa was staying there, so what did it matter if the house was a mess? Muttering, she got to work, deciding to get it over with. Her mom had probably told Lisa to make sure she actually _did_ clean, and it wouldn't do well for her if Lisa gave a bad report. That could definitely hurt any future chances of staying home alone again.

She spent the rest of the day cleaning, cursing her brother for not doing his share while shoving a bunch of random junk into his room. Hey, as long as the house _looked_ clean, it really didn't matter, right? Right.

A few hours later, she collapsed onto her bed, exhausted. The sun had now set, and she could make out a small sliver of the moon through her window. 'Maybe I'll actually sleep tonight,' she thought bitterly, looking up to the ceiling. She noticed that it was always harder for her to sleep when the moon was full, or at least fuller. She attributed it to the amount of light; her windows had no blinds or anything, so naturally it would be harder to sleep with a lot of light spilling in. 'I should really get curtains one of these days,' she mused, hands behind her head. She had had curtains in the past, but whenever they were closed she just felt so isolated. It was comforting to be able to see the stars, and the moon, even if it was sometimes a nuisance. That, and she also had a slight phobia of the dark, though she would never admit it.

Suddenly feeling rather tired, she smiled, snuggling more into her pillow. She'd developed a habit of being quite the insomniac, and she was due for a good night of sleep. She seriously doubted that it was healthy to stay up all night for weeks on end. "I'll finish cleaning tomorrow," she yawned. Without bothering to change, or to turn off the lights for that matter, she allowed herself to drift off to sleep.

After what seemed like only a few minutes, she opened her eyes groggily. Was it morning already? She groaned and went to pull her covers up over her head, groping around for a good minute before realizing that they weren't there. She sighed, rolling over to see if they had fallen onto the floor or something, only to find that… she was already on the floor. The cold floor. Which was odd, since her room had carpet… 'Wait, what?'

Aila's eyes snapped open and she sat up, looking around. Of course, it didn't make much of a difference; it was so dark that she had to blink a few times to make sure her eyes were indeed open. 'What _is_ this?' she thought in annoyance, placing her hand mere inches away from her face and still having trouble seeing it.

For one terrifying moment, she thought she'd gone blind; her room was never this dark. 'I'm not in my room,' she reminded herself as she felt the cold, hard ground beneath her. 'I must be dreaming…' She looked around again, trying to make her eyes adjust. Nothing but darkness… She sweatdropped. 'Jeez, my imagination _really_ sucks.'

_The world is full of darkness._

Aila jumped, looking around for the source of the voice. "Who's there?"

_Shadows will forever surround you, no matter the path you choose._

The voice echoed through the… place, and Aila had the strange sensation of hearing it in her own mind as well. She shook her head, trying to rid herself of the possible schizophrenic episode. Finally stopping, she waited, perfectly still, straining her ears for any sound. All was silent. She smiled, thinking that the voice was gone.

…

_But fear not._

Nope.

With a sigh, she stood, being careful not to lose her bearings, something she discovered to be considerably more difficult when you can't see the floor.

_All you must do, is turn on the light._

She raised an eyebrow. "Like, a light switch?" she asked to the darkness, not really sure where to direct her question.

_Can you do it?_

Her other eyebrow rose to join the first, a look of pure confusion covering her face. She looked around again, spreading her arms in front of her and feeling around for some kind of wall with a light switch on it… or even a lamp. Maybe a flashlight? "Uh… Can _you_ do it?" she asked the voice. "I kind of can't see, well, anything."

_Sometimes… you can only truly see… when your eyes are not open._

What? Aila was now thoroughly confused. "What am I, a magician?" she asked. "How can I see with my eyes closed?"

No answer.

"_Now_ you're quiet," she muttered, glaring into the darkness. She was never any good at riddles, and she got the feeling that this voice enjoyed them immensely. Can a voice enjoy riddles? Aila ran a hand over her face, closing her eyes with a groan. After a few moments, she saw a flash, causing her to yelp and jump back, her eyes flying open. Once again, all she saw was darkness. "What was _that_?"

Curious, Aila closed her eyes again. A few seconds passed, and suddenly there was another flash, causing her to jump yet again, but careful to keep her eyes shut this time. Everything was still dark, but she could now see outlines of things in the shadows.

She noticed that she was on some kind of circular platform, outlined grey against the vast nothingness beyond. In front of her there was some kind of pedestal, its features indistinguishable in the darkness. Other than that, there really wasn't much there. She cursed her boring imagination once more before moving towards the pedestal, keeping her eyes shut tight. She was almost afraid to open them, finding just these faint outlines more comforting than the almost suffocating darkness of before.

When she reached the pedestal, she noticed something etched in the stone. She squinted her already closed eyes, trying to 'see' the markings more clearly. Suddenly, they glowed brightly before quickly fading again. However, it was as if they were now burned into her eyes; she could now see their outlines pretty clearly. 'Guess that explains the first glow,' the thought noting that these new outlines were the same as those of the platform and the pedestal itself.

Focusing again on the markings, she realized that there was what appeared to be a crescent moon overlapping a sun, a star resting at the bottom tip of the moon. Below this was… a handprint? She stared at it for a moment and then looked at her own hand. It too glowed, allowing her to see its outline as she raised it in front of her face. It looked rather odd and detached from her body since she still couldn't see her arm, and she opened and closed her fingers a few times to be sure it was really her hand. Satisfied that it was, she looked back to the handprint before her. 'I wonder…'

Reaching out slowly, Aila felt her fingers touch the cold, smooth surface of the pedestal. She hesitated before finally allowing her entire hand to fall into the outline of the handprint. They matched perfectly.

Suddenly, she felt a jolt run down her arm and out of her hand, causing her to yelp. She jumped back, tripping over her own feet and falling hard onto her backside. Groaning, she opened her eyes, blinking a few times as she did. It was no longer dark. Instead, light seemed to radiate from, well, everywhere; the platform she stood on shone with different colors, reminding her of some kind of odd mosaic, and the pedestal in front of her, which appeared to be white marble, glowed warmly, both the handprint and the moon/sun/star marking lit up with white light that shone so brightly Aila almost felt the urge to close her eyes again.

Looking down to her hand, which was now clearly attached to her body again ('Thank God'), she noticed with some shock that even _she _was glowing. A faint white light outlined her features, making her feel oddly like a firefly. She also noticed that she was not wearing the same outfit she had had on when she went to sleep. She now wore somewhat baggy black cargo pants and a dark blue tank top under a short, black, short-sleeved jacket with a silver lining. 'Like a cloud,' she thought with a stupid grin. She had always wanted cargo pants (they made her feel like she was going on an adventure), but they never seemed like something she would wear in real life. However, since this seemed pretty darn far from what one would call 'real life,' she was content. She still wore her same black and blue shoes and was now sporting black fingerless gloves with a single silver crescent moon on the back of each. Her hair was still tied back in a low ponytail.

"This is so weird," she muttered, standing up once again. As she did, she noticed that the platform mural was decorated with the same moon, sun, and star thing as on the pedestal. There were also three figures, their features hidden in shadow. Suddenly, one became visible, causing Aila to gasp. "Is that… me?" She was leaning against the moon, arms by her sides, face turned towards what Aila assumed would be sky if the picture went on. She had a somewhat sad smile on her face, and her eyes were closed. Her picture was outlined in white, which Aila noticed resembled the white glow around the real her at the moment.

The second figure, which Aila got the feeling was a boy, was leaning against the sun, his arms crossed in front of him. He too was looking up, but his face was still completely shadowed, so Aila couldn't see his expression. He was outlined in gold. The way they were situated, Aila couldn't help but feel that she and the boy were facing opposite directions for a reason, almost like they didn't want to look at each other; she felt sick at the thought for some reason and forced herself to look away.

The final figure, the smallest of the three, stood directly below the star, arms spread out wide. She looked up at the star, directly between the other two, and it was clear that from her vantage point she would be able to see both the sun and moon, as well as the figures that accompanied them. Her outline was a bright yellow, making her actual silhouette seem even darker.

Aila studied the picture for a long while, unable to tear her eyes away from it. It really was a beautiful mural…

_The light will cut through the darkness._

Aila jumped, clutching a hand to her beating heart. She had all but forgotten about the voice, its sudden reappearance startling her. Scowling, she straightened herself once more.

_But be warned…_

Aila raised an eyebrow, getting a sudden sinking feeling in her stomach.

_For where there is light…_

She turned, eyes widening in shock as dark patches began to rise from the ground. "Uh oh…"

_There must always be shadow._

The dark things began to take shape, and before long Aila could make out beady yellow eyes staring back at her. "Heartless?!" she cried in alarm, backing away from the creatures. She turned and ran, only to find herself at the edge of the platform with nowhere to go. She spun back around, the Shadows moving in closer. "I think I liked it better when I had a crappy imagination," she said worriedly.

_And you…_

She took another step back, her heal almost slipping off the edge.

…_Must fight._

"What?!" Aila shouted. "But… how?!" She looked up and received no answer, the Shadows getting closer and closer. "Can't I at least get like a weapon or something?" she asked desperately. Suddenly, a light appeared in her right hand, and in a brilliant light show, it formed…

A very plain looking staff.

"Are you kidding me with this?" Aila cried exasperatedly. Her new 'weapon' was anything but impressive. Just a simple, metal staff, almost like an unhollow pipe; it kind of reminded her of Robin's bo-staff from Teen Titans, except she was pretty sure hers wouldn't extent to be like fifty feet long. Really, how did his do that? It was just not physically possible, and rather unrealistic.

"Ah, focus, Aila!" She hit herself in the head. Now was no time to be thinking of cartoons! Suddenly, a Heartless crouched, getting ready to attack. Aila's eyes narrowed. It may have been a boring weapon, but at least it was something. And she was gonna use it to get rid of these things. The Heartless jumped at her, and with a yell Aila swung the staff like a bat, aiming right for the thing's head. Right before the Heartless and the weapon collided, Aila felt the same jolt of energy from before run through her arms and into the staff.

She hit it, her staff going clean through the Shadow before it disappeared, its purple heart rising into the sky. She watched as it vanished and then looked back to her staff. It was now emitting a bright white glow, making it slightly more impressive. Still, it seemed to be effective, as the Heartless were backing away, as if pained by the light. Another brave one leapt at her, but she hit that one as well, with the same effect. Smirking, she looked back to the other Heartless. "So, who's next?"

Now much more confident, she proceeded to destroy the last of the Shadows. She grinned triumphantly, her staff returning to its original dull state. She had no time to celebrate, however, as the ground began to shake, pools of darkness appearing all over the mural. It took all her concentration not to fall over, the shaking growing more and more intense.

_Some lights will go out._

The darkness began to cover the figures on the mural, and Aila gasped as her light section of ground began to shrink.

_Do not be tempted to follow._

The figures were almost completely covered, and Aila found herself surrounded by darkness. It began inching its way up her leg and she screamed.

_Do not be afraid._

Aila made a sound of annoyance, hacking at the dark tendrils inching their way up her legs, but being careful not to hit her own body. The tendrils kept coming, inching their way around her torso, and she screamed again before one slid over her mouth, silencing her.

_Your journey will be a dark one._

She struggled, now completely bound by the darkness. It forced her to the ground, and soon she was almost completely engulfed in it.

_But remember…_

The darkness began to slide over her fear-filled eyes, which darted back and forth, searching for something, _anything_ that could save her.

But there was nothing.

_Light shines brightest in the dark._

She closed her eyes, and everything went black.

KHKHKHKHKHKHKHKH

Aila groaned as she slipped back into consciousness. "What a nightmare," she mumbled, bringing a hand to her head. She rolled over, pulling the covers up higher over her head.

"She's awake!" she heard someone exclaim, followed by footsteps coming towards her bed. 'Mom must be coming to wake me up for breakfast… wait, isn't mom on a trip? I thought I had the house to myself…'

Aila gasped and sat up, her eyes darting around wildly. This was definitely _not_ her room. It was cluttered, with many books strewn about and strange objects pushed into the corners.

"Whoa, easy there," someone said, putting a hand on Aila's shoulder. She jumped and turned to see two girls smiling at her. Two girls that she had seen somewhere before… she froze as she finally made the connection. "It's okay, we won't hurt you," said the girl, obviously misinterpreting Aila's actions.

"How are you feeling?" the other girl asked sweetly.

"Uh…" Aila looked back and forth between the two. It couldn't be… Yuffie and Aerith? But… how… She groaned, placing her head in her hands. 'I must still be dreaming,' she thought, shaking her head.

"You okay? You don't look so good." she looked up again to see Yuffie, a slightly worried expression on her face.

Aerith looked worried as well. She reached a hand out and placed it on Aila's forehead. "You have a fever," she stated softly, withdrawing her hand and smiling kindly at Aila. "I'll be right back." She made her way outside, closing the door quietly behind her, and Aila was left with Yuffie.

"What… what happened?" Aila asked slowly, not quite sure what to do. Yuffie sat down on the edge of the bed, putting a finger to her chin in contemplation.

"Well… I don't really know," she said after a while. Aila let out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding. "To tell you the truth, we were kind of hoping you could tell us," Yuffie said with a small laugh. Aila gave her a confused look. "I mean," Yuffie continued, "Me and Leon were out patrolling when we found you passed out in one of the alleys."

"What?" Aila asked, growing more confused by the second. Yuffie nodded, and Aila frowned, looking down at her hands. She noticed she still had those odd gloves on. So it _was_ still a dream. She sighed, still not completely at ease, but feeling somewhat better knowing that she would wake up at some point. "So… where is here?" she asked finally.

"Hollow Bastion, of course," Yuffie said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Aila's head shot up, her eyes nearly bugging out of her head. Just at that moment, the door slammed open and two men walked in, followed by Aerith. The blonde man looked rather irked about something.

"I'm telling you, that damn security system is more trouble than it's worth! We should just scrap the thing and find something else, something that will actually _act_ like a security system every once in a while!"

'That's definitely Cid,' Aila thought with a sweatdrop. The other man, who she could easily see was Leon, shot Cid a look, the blonde biting his tongue. They then began making their way over to the bed, and Aila quickly looked away. Their footsteps stopped and she cautiously looked back up, only to find Leon kneeling right in front of her. Aila averted her eyes, knowing that many people found it unsettling when she made eye contact with them. And, well, Leon was kind of really intimidating.

"How do you feel?" He asked suddenly, making Aila jump a little. His voice was soft, which she figured he'd done on purpose so as not to startle her; mission failed. After all, this was _Leon_, for Christ's sake!

"Uh, um… I'm f-fine," Aila managed to stutter. She chanced a glance and saw him frowning slightly, obviously not believing her. 'Yeah, I wouldn't believe me either.' Aila was a terrible liar, and she was anything but fine. She was in the middle of a game… maybe. Talking to _characters_ in that game. And she was _in_ a _game_. A _video game_. She shook her head again, trying to clear it. 'It's not real,' she told herself again, frowning.

"Here." Aila looked up to see Aerith holding out some kind of bottle to her. Aerith smiled. "It'll make you feel better."

Aila took the bottle carefully, noticing a green liquid sloshing inside. It looked almost like a… potion? She stared at it questioningly. It didn't look too appetizing… but apparently it had great effects, she'd had seen that. Well, she'd seen it work in the game at least. Slowly, she took a sip, surprised to find that it really didn't taste like much of anything. It did, however, warm her from the inside out, making her head feel instantly better. Smiling, she drank the rest, giving the bottle back to Aerith when she was done. "Thank you," she said quietly, smiling slightly. Aerith nodded and smiled back, taking the empty bottle away.

"So," Cid began, sitting backwards on a chair. ('Why do guys do that?') "What happened to you?"

"Um," Aila hesitated, all eyes focused on her. She shifted, not really used to all the attention. "I… don't really… remember," she mumbled.

"She doesn't seem to know what happened," Yuffie told the others. "She asked _me_ what happened, and I have no idea! I mean, I'm just as confused as she is!"

"I see," Leon said, standing up and leaning on the wall next to the bed. He was silent for a few minutes, staring at the ground, thinking. "What do you remember?" He asked suddenly. Aila looked down, scrunching up her face as she thought.

"Well…" She wondered if she should tell them the truth. Yes, that seemed like the best plan. Just leave out the whole 'you're actually video game characters' thing and there shouldn't be any problems. "My parents were going out of town for a while, so I was home alone. I was cleaning up and then I got tired, so I went into my room and fell asleep…" She frowned. "Then I had this really freaky dream, and this weird voice was talking to me. Something about light and darkness and… stuff… and then it sicked some Heartless on me…"

"Heartless?" Leon asked, eyebrow raised. Aila nodded.

"Yeah… I dunno if the voice told them to attack or what, but it wasn't helping things." Aila sighed, thinking about how crazy she must sound; voices in your head are never a good thing. "Anyways, I fought them all, but then this shadow thing came and I couldn't get away, and then…" she sighed again. "Then I woke up here." Everyone was silent.

"Well that's… interesting," Cid said slowly. Aila frowned. He didn't believe her.

"I'm not crazy," she said quietly, more to herself than anything.

"Never said you were," Cid responded. "Just said it was interesting."

"It sounds like," Leon said, choosing his words carefully. "You're from a different world."

'You have no idea,' Aila thought worriedly. The others gasped.

"But… how?" Aerith asked.

"Yeah, I thought someone disconnected the worlds," Yuffie said. 'Someone?' Aila looked at her strangely, though she didn't notice. Why didn't she just say Sora?

"I… thought so too," Leon said with a sigh. "But… this sounds strangely familiar. And with the Heartless involved…" He trailed off, not needing to finish. Everyone got the idea.

"What can we do?" Aerith asked quietly.

Leon paused. "We'll just have to wait and see what happens." He stood up straight. "There's nothing else we can do."

"Well then, kid," Cid said after a moment. Aila looked over to see him grinning at her. "Welcome to Hollow Bastion."


	2. Welcome to the World

Chapter 2

Hello again! This is one of the real "getting settled" chapter. The real plot will most likely begin in the next chapter, but there's important stuff in this one two, so don't skip it or anything.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts II or any of the character in Kingdom Hearts II. I only own Aila and her family.

_Dreams pass into the reality of action. From the actions stems the dream again; and this interdependence produces the highest form of living. --Anais Nin_

Chapter 2: Welcome to the World

"Ooh, this is so exciting! I haven't had a roommate in ages!" Yuffie exclaimed as she skipped happily down one of Hollow Bastion's many streets.

"Uh, yeah," Aila said, only half listening as she followed a little ways behind. It had been decided that, since she seemed to be stuck here for the time being, Aila would be living with Yuffie. Apparently she had a guest room at her house. To be honest, Aila was kind of shocked that she even HAD a house in the first place. She'd explored every inch of this world as Sora and she'd never seen any evidence that anyone besides Merlin had an actual residence. But they couldn't all just live at Merlin's, so it made sense that they each had their own houses, right?

Not that anything _really_ made any sense at the moment. This was a long dream! 'That's what I get for going to sleep early,' Aila thought, annoyed.

"Hellooo? Earth to Aila! Come in Aila!"

"Huh?" Aila asked, finally noticing Yuffie's hand waving in front of her face. "Oh, um, sorry, did you say something?"

Yuffie crossed her arms, looking a bit annoyed. "You're a little spacey, you know that? I said, what do you want to eat tonight? It's getting kind of late, and I'm starving! I usually just order take-out, seeing as my cooking skills are rather, er, how shall I put it... nonexistent?"

"Oh, er, I don't know," Aila said, trying to hide her confusion. Hollow Bastion had take-out? "You can just... choose... Is it really that late?"

"Well, yeah. You were out of it like all day, silly! You must be starving too. I know! Let's order..." And with that, she began talking nonstop about food and restaurants and which places took the longest to deliver and so on, so that by the time the girls finally got to the house Aila was pretty sure that she knew more about Hollow Bastion's gourmet industry than all of the actual Hollow Bastion residents. Combined.

As it turned out, there was a whole other section of Hollow Bastion on the other side of the Market Place that Aila hadn't been able to go to in the game. Yuffie's house seemed to be at the very end of this other section, smashed between what looked like abandoned buildings on either side. From the outside, it looked basically like Merlin's house, and for a moment Aila wondered if Yuffie had just led her in one gigantic circle as some kind of cruel prank.

"Well, come on!" Yuffie said excitedly, opening the door and motioning for Aila to go inside. She wondered briefly as she walked through the door if Yuffie was always this excited when someone came over. "Welcome to the Casa de Yuffie!"

Yuffie's house was made up of what seemed to be only four rooms. The main room, the one they were currently standing in, consisted of a kitchen area (in which everything was covered in a rather noticeable layer of dust), a TV and a big, shiny black couch, a big futuristic looking bookshelf surrounded by more shiny black chairs, and a stereo in the corner. The walls alternated between purple and green, and the floor was smooth grey cement. There were three doors, one on the far wall and two on the wall to the right. Aila guessed that those led to Yuffie's room, the guest room (or "her room" for now), and maybe a bathroom?

"Wow," Aila said, taking it all in. It all looked very futuristic and cool.

"Come on! I'll show you your room!" Yuffie grabbed Aila's arm and dragged her to the closest door on her right. "That's my room over there," she said, pointing to the door on the opposite wall as they walked. "And that's the bathroom," she continued, pointing to the remaining door. 'Aha, I was right.' Aila smirked triumphantly. "Sorry, I've only got one, so we'll have to share."

"That's okay, back home I share a bathroom with my little sister. I'm used to it," Aila said as Yuffie opened the door to the guest room.

"Ta-daaa!" she sang as she spread her arms out wide in front of her. This room was pretty simple, just a plain white bed and plain white walls. There was a little dresser against the far wall and an empty closet on the left. On the right, there was a window above the bed, the blinds looking dangerously close to falling off.

Yuffie coughed. "Er, yeah, it's a bit plain..." She smiled. "But if you want, I can help you decorate later! What d'ya say?"

"Thanks, Yuffie. This is fine though," Aila said, waving her hands in front of her. "You don't need to go to any trouble..."

"Nonsense! It'll be fun!" Yuffie pumped her fist in the air excitedly. "Ooh, and we'll get the others to help too! We can go shopping and paint the walls and..."

"Er, Leon doesn't exactly seem like the wall painting type," Aila said uncertainly.

"Aw, that tough guy thing is all an act. He's really a big softie," Yuffie said, waving her hand dismissively. For some reason, Aila kind of doubted that. "Besides, he helped me paint mine!"

"Really?" Aila asked, surprised again. Leon painting... an image of Leon in a smock and beret painting a field of flowers suddenly popped into Aila's mind. She coughed in an attempt to disguise her laughing, earning her an odd look from Yuffie.

"So, anyways, does pizza sound good to you?" Yuffie asked.

"Yeah, that sounds great," Aila said, smiling a little.

"Kay. I'll go order it now. You can just make yourself at home, roomie!" Yuffie laughed and left the room. Aila sighed, wondering how long that "roomie" thing would last.

Aila slowly made her way over to the bed and sat down. It was surprisingly comfortable and had thick, poofy blankets. Aila smiled a bit, and then frowned. Time to get serious.

She went over the things she knew in her mind. First, she was ninety-nine point nine percent sure she was dreaming. So, therefore, she could wake up at any time. And when she did wake up, she'd go right back to her boring old life where she never got the chance to go on adventures or talk to some of her favorite fictional characters or anything of the sort. And on top of that, she wasn't done cleaning. So, why not make the most of this? This was a pretty cool dream she was having, so why spoil it with worrying? She grinned. "I'm sorry I ever doubted you, dear imagination," she whispered to herself, laughing a bit.

For half a second, her mind lingered on the fact that she was surprisingly aware in this dream, not only of what was happening to her at the moment, but also of what she would be doing when she woke up. Usually her dreams were very vague and fuzzy, like she was being hurriedly dragged along by some predetermined plot while trying to see through very fuzzy glasses. But in this dream everything was clear, and she felt like she had the ability and the time to make decisions. However, before she could dwell on this any further, she heard Yuffie calling her from the main room.

"What's up?" Aila asked, walking into the main room. Yuffie was settled on the couch, staring at the TV she seemed to have just turned on.

"The pizza will be here in a couple minutes. Wanna watch some TV?"

Aila blinked. "A couple minutes? You mean, like, thirty, right?"

Yuffie turned around to stare at her. "THIRTY MINUTES??" she exclaimed, seemingly horror-stricken. "That's insanity! Why in the name of Hollow Bastion would it take so long?"

Aila blinked again. "Um... because... that's how long it always takes?"

Before Aila realized what had happened, Yuffie had jumped off the couch and pulled her into a somewhat suffocating hug. She really _did_ have ninja-like speed. "Oh you poor girl! What a tortuous world you must have come from! To think that people would be willing to let others _starve_ like that. It's an outrage!"

"Uh, um, uh..." Aila stuttered, not sure what to say. Thankfully, she was saved by a knock at the door.

"Hooray!" Yuffie shouted, making her way over to the door while dragging the still confused Aila with her. "Took your time, did you?" she said as she opened the door to the Moogle who stood... er... floated there with a pizza in his hands. The Moogle just shrugged, handing her the pizza and holding out his little hand for the payment. Yuffie gave him some munny and he departed with a quick "Thanks, Kupo!" as she closed the door.

"Whoa," Aila said. Hadn't Yuffie ordered like three minutes ago? No wonder she thought thirty minutes was cruel.

"So, tell me about your world," Yuffie said, setting the pizza box down on the arm of the couch and opening it, offering Aila a slice. "Besides the whole wanting you to starve debacle, are there any other mean things people do there?"

'Wow, she's really miffed about that,' Aila thought, sweatdropping. With a laugh, she took the slice of pizza. "You think that's mean? You should see American Idol..."

KHKHKHKHKHKH

"Aila... Aiiiiiilaaaa... Wake uuuuup..."

Aila moaned, pulling the covers all the way over her head. "_Mo-om_, it's summer," she whined, rolling over and trying to go back to sleep.

"Well that's too bad, cause I'm in charge today and we're on a tight schedule. Now UP UP UP!!"

Aila screamed and fell out of bed, startled by the sudden yelling. She winced, having landed on cold concrete, and groggily opened her eyes. Yuffie was standing over her, laughing hysterically.

"Man, ah-haha, that was, haha, so fun!" Yuffie laughed, holding her stomach from laughing so hard.

Aila blinked. "Yuffie?" she mumbled, confusion in her eyes. "I'm still here... I've never had a dream that I fall asleep and wake up in before..." Yuffie, who was still laughing, was oblivious as Aila voiced her thoughts. That's when Aila realized what had just happened. She took a deep breath.

"YUFFIE!"

Aila paused a moment before letting her breath out in a low hiss. Wasn't she about to say that?

"YUFFIE, YOU'D BETTER GET OUT HERE RIGHT NOW SO I CAN TELL YOU WHAT I THINK ABOUT BEING UP THIS GOD-DAMN EARLY!"

Yuffie sweatdropped. "Uh, I think Cid's here."

"You think?" Aila deadpanned, still miffed about her wake-up call. Untangling herself from her blankets, she stood up and yawned, stretching.

"Come out when you're ready, okay?" Yuffie said happily and skipped out to the main room. "Hey guys, what's up?"

"YUFFIE! WHY YOU--!"

Aila couldn't help but chuckle a little. Serves Yuffie right for being so chipper in the mornings. Seriously, what time was it anyways? Aila glanced out the window above her bed. The sky was a pale grey, the sun barely up enough to even be considered up. She scowled. Like most insomniacs, Aila didn't do mornings.

Sighing, she made her way over to the dresser. No mirror. Of course. She noticed that there was no mirror on the closet either. Now what? The bathroom was right next door, but she couldn't go into the main room with everybody out there. Just imagining what a mess she looked like right now made her blush.

She bit her lower lip and shifted her weight back and forth for a few seconds. 'Maybe there's one at the back of the closet?' she thought hopefully.

Aila slid open the closet door, praying that there was a mirror inside. But it was empty. Groaning, Aila was about to try and call Yuffie back in when she noticed something on the back wall of the closet. There was a thin stream of light coming through the wall, and when she squinted Aila made out almost what she thought looked like the outline of...

"A door?" she gasped. She darted into the closet and ran her finger along the sliver where the light was coming through. Now that she was closer, she could see hinges on the left side. She placed her hand on the small metal handle and paused. What if this was like that movie where the kids go through the wardrobe and wind up in a magical new world? But, she was already in a new world, and she couldn't leave yet. She just got here! And what if this other world was terrible, and she'd have no way to get back and then she'd be stuck in a nightmare instead of a dream about a game?

Aila shook her head. "That's stupid," she mumbled. Still, she couldn't help but worry a bit as she turned the knob. "Narnia, here I come," she whispered, taking a step and walking through the door into...

The bathroom.

Aila laughed smacked her head. "Wow, I really must be losing it." This stupid dream was messing with her grasp on reality.

Spotting the mirror above the sink on the opposite wall, Aila made her way over to it, still rubbing some sleep from her eyes. Her hair was down, as it was much more comfortable to sleep with it that way, and it was kind of messy, but other than that, she was surprised to find she didn't look nearly as bad as she'd expected to look. In fact, she looked like she'd already gotten ready for the day. Her skin was smooth and even-colored, much better than she'd ever seen it without any makeup, and her hair, though somewhat out of place, looked shiny and smooth.

'Well, I am in a game,' she thought curiously. 'Here it seems like they always look pretty perfect, even after they've been battling nonstop for who knows how long.' Aila smirked a bit. 'Cool.'

Unfortunately, her eyes were just as bright as ever. Actually, they looked even brighter than usual. Aila leaned forward, widening her eyes as much as possible as she examined them. Yep, they were definitely looking extra freakishly bright today. Great.

With a sigh, Aila turned on the sink and washed her face, more to wake her up than because her face really needed the washing. It looked the same after as it had before, which was kind of exciting. This whole roll-out-of-bed-looking-perfect thing really cut down on her morning routine time to say the least. After running her brush through her hair just a few times, every strand was in place. Aila took the hair tie off her wrist and pulled her hair into its usual low ponytail. Feeling satisfied, she turned back to the secret door, only to realize that there was no handle on this side.

"Crap," she sighed. She had been planning on trying to get Yuffie back for this morning with the help of that door. Noticing that it hadn't closed completely, Aila dug her fingers into the little opening and pulled, trying to wedge the door open again. "Ow owowowow," she whispered, her fingers being squeezed as she slowly opened the door once again. Finally, she was able to slip back into the closet and shut the door securely behind her. She grinned triumphantly and closed the closet door too, just in case. Then she hurried to the main room, hoping she hadn't kept anyone waiting. Judging from the pizza incident last night, it appeared that people in this world needed instant gratification.

...Or maybe that was just Yuffie.

As Aila walked into the main room, she registered a few things at once. First, Leon was doing his signature "leaning on the wall" thing next to Aerith who was sitting in a chair by the bookcase. Second, Cid was still furious at Yuffie and had now taken to chasing her around the apartment while the other two watched drowsily. And third, Yuffie was running straight towards her.

"Hurry Aila, hide me!" Yuffie yelled, grabbing Aila and holding the poor girl in front of her like a shield.

"Ah, Y-Yuffie, let me go!" Aila stuttered, glancing anxiously at a very angry looking Cid charging right for them. She struggled a little, trying to get away as Yuffie tightened her grip. Thinking quickly, Aila pushed them both through the still ajar door to her own room and onto the floor right before Cid tackled them. They heard a 'thud' as Cid hit the wall behind where they had just been standing.

Cid began cursing as Aila finally got away from Yuffie and sat up, pulling the door open slightly and peaking out. "Ah, I'm sorry!" she said when she saw Cid, who was rubbing a bump that was forming fairly quickly on his forehead.

"Sorry for what?" Yuffie said, pushing Aila to the floor again so she could see out too. "He totally deserved it."

"Why you..." Cid started, balling his fists and glaring at Yuffie.

"That's enough you two." Aila looked over to see that Leon was no longer leaning on the wall, but was now standing and looking very serious. "You're giving me a headache. Quit it." The authority in his voice left no doubt that the fight was definitely over. He was obviously the leader.

"Aw, fine." Yuffie pouted, got up, and walked back into the main room, Aila following nervously behind.

"Humph," Cid grunted, crossing his arms and looking away.

"I really am sorry," Aila said nervously, biting her lip.

Cid looked at her and sighed. "Aw, don't worry about it," he mumbled.

"Cid just gets a little grumpy in the morning, that's all," Aerith said, smiling sweetly as she stood.

"That was some fast thinking," Leon said, turning to Aila. "Where'd you learn to do that?"

"Um... nowhere... it was kind of just instinct I guess." Aila smiled and rubbed the back of her neck nervously, looking away.

"So, why don't we get going then?" Aerith asked happily.

Aila was confused. "Going? Going where?"

"I told you, silly, we're helping you decorate your room!" Yuffie put an arm around Aila and began steering her to the front door. "See? I told you I'd get everyone to help."

"What? B-but, Yuffie, I told you, the room's fine the way it is!" Aila protested.

"Psh, you're just saying that to be nice. It's boring and you know it, so quit it!"

"But--"

"It's alright Aila, we don't mind," Aerith said, putting a comforting hand on Aila's shoulder. "You've been through a lot. It's the least we can do to make you feel welcome." She smiled, and Aila couldn't help but smile back.

"Thank you," Aila said, careful as always not to make direct eye contact, especially with her eyes looking extra weird today.

"Yeah, yeah, but the thing I don't understand is why we had to help so gosh-darn early in the morning," Cid said, still grumpy. Aila noticed that he'd toned down the swearing now that she was in the same room.

"I'm not a morning person either," Aila sighed, scowling a little at Yuffie, who was oblivious.

"I am!" Yuffie sang. Aila rolled her eyes, trying and failing to suppress a smile. "So, Aila, how do you want to decorate your room?"

"Er... I have no idea," Aila said, rubbing the back of her neck. "I'm not much of a decorator..."

"Well, we'll start with the basics then." Yuffie put a finger to her chin, thinking. "Oh! I know! What's your favorite color?"

Aila thought for a second, looking at her outfit. "Heh... blue," she said, pointing to her shirt and grinning.

"Ooh, we'll make the room match your eyes!" Yuffie said, so excited that she was literally bouncing up and down as she walked.

Aila's smile fell. "Oh... uh, s-sure, I guess..." So her room would emphasize the one feature she hated about herself. Oh joy.

"What's wrong, you don't like my idea?" Yuffie asked, seeming rather hurt. Aila sweatdropped.

"Oh, no no no, it's not that! I just, well, I don't... um, it's nothing. It's a great idea Yuffie." Aila tried to smile as much as she could, though she was pretty sure they could all see right through it. Yuffie seemed satisfied, however, and continued to spout off more decorating ideas. Leon and Aerith, however, didn't seem as convinced. Aila noticed that they were giving her odd looks, and so she sped up with Yuffie, pretending to be interested in her ramblings. Thankfully, Leon and Aerith dropped it, and Cid was much too tired to care.

KHKHKHKHKHKHKHKH

"I've been workin' on the raaaaaaailroad, all the live long day! Everybody!"

Aila sighed for what felt like the thousandth time that day. The five of them had been painting her room for about an hour now, and Yuffie had been singing "I've Been Working on the Railroad" the _entire_ time. Yuffie _never_ ran out of energy! Aila didn't understand how she did it. Heck, it was draining just being around her.

Needless to say, no one was joining in, and so Yuffie just sang louder.

"Come on everyone, one more time!" Yuffie shouted, practically jumping up and down.

"Yuffie, I swear, if you don't stop singing that song, I'm going to glue your mouth shut," Leon growled, working on his section of the wall, which happened to be next to where Aila was working. Aila giggled, but then quickly turned it into a cough as Yuffie turned to glare at them.

"Well _excuse me_ for trying to liven things up a little bit," Yuffie said, crossing her arms and scowling at Aila and Leon. Aila, who was pretending to be very focused on painting the wall, scooted a little closer to Leon. Yuffie seemed to like to pick on her a bit, and that was when she was in a _good_ mood. If Yuffie was in a _bad_ mood, Aila figured she might need some extra protection.

"This wall is done," Aerith proclaimed, thankfully changing the subject. Yuffie turned, completely forgetting Leon and Aila for the moment.

"Great!" she complimented, eyeing Aerith's work. Deciding it was safe to face Yuffie now, Aila turned around as well to see the finished wall. After all, it was her room they were working on.

Aerith's wall, the one with the window, had been painted a light violet color. It looked like Aerith had done a nice job painting it, and Aila smiled, satisfied with how it had turned out.

"Great, we're done too," Leon said, painting over the last white spot on his wall, opposite of Aerith's. Aila turned to look back at the wall she'd just helped paint. This one was a light green, supposedly to "lighten the room up" as Yuffie had put it. The remaining two walls were to be painted a "happy" blue (also in Yuffie's words). They had also gotten a blue comforter for the bed and a green chair for the desk. At first, Aila had been unsure about the color combination, but she had to admit that it was turning out pretty nicely. Yuffie's wall was almost done ('Maybe she'd be done if she hadn't been singing so much...'), and Cid's wall... well...

"CID! QUIT SLEEPING ON THE JOB!" Yuffie yelled as she walked over and whacked Cid on the head. Cid, who had been sleeping peacefully against his half-finished wall, yawned.

"Aw, Yuffie, it's too early for yelling..." he said drowsily. Aila snorted. Cid seemed too out of it to even yell back.

"Cid, I would be happy to finish your wall for you if you would move out of the way," Aerith offered, walking over and looking at Cid.

Cid stretched. "Thanks, Aerith," he mumbled, standing up and moving out of the way. That's when Yuffie burst out laughing. Cid growled. "_What_ is so dang _funny_?" he demanded, his eye twitching a bit.

Yuffie could barely answer as she continued to laugh. "You... you... hahahaha... your back..." was all she could get out.

Curious, Aila looked at the back of Cid's shirt and noticed that it was blue. 'That's funny, I thought his shirt was all white... Ohhhhhh...'

Cid had fallen asleep against a wall of paint. A wall of _wet_ paint. Aila began to giggle, covering her mouth with her hands to try and stifle her laughter. It didn't work.

"What? What the heck is so funny about my back?" Cid asked, annoyed. He strained his neck and tried to see over his own shoulder, making himself look even more humorous. Yuffie and Aila's laughter grew louder.

By now even Aerith was giggling, and Leon had an evil smirk on his face. "Way to go, genius," he commented smugly, obviously enjoying his friend's misfortune as much as the rest of them were.

"Grr, why isn't there a mirror in here?!" Cid finally exploded, stomping out of the room and over to the bathroom. After a few moments, Cid finally realized what was so hilarious.

"MY SHIRT!"

For some reason, he didn't find it quite as amusing as the others did.

KHKHKHKHKHKH

The next morning, Aila was awakened by the sound of the television. It sounded like Yuffie was watching some sort of action cartoon thing, the kind that had very loud, repetitive music and sound effects. Aila looked out the window and groaned. Yuffie got up _so early_! The sky was still grey outside, just like it had been the day before when Aila had been forced to get up.

Thankfully, Aila was pretty good at going back to sleep for at least a little while after she initially woke up, if she really wanted to. And today, she _really_ wanted to. Decorating the day before had been more draining than she'd expected; she was exhausted! So Aila simply rolled over, pulled the covers up over her head, ignored the TV, and drifted back to sleep...

A few moments later, she opened her eyes to find herself surrounded by darkness. Aila sat up with a groan. "Not again!"

_Turn on the light._

Aila sighed. "I already did this!" she whined, glaring into the darkness. "You know, in the future, if you could just have the lights already on when I get here, it would be a huge help." The voice didn't answer, of course. She vaguely wondered if it could even hear her at all. It wasn't exactly like it responded to her last time either.

With yet another sigh, Aila stood up and closed her eyes. She knew the drill. There was a bright flash, just like last time, but when it faded Aila was confused to see that this time, there was no pedestal in the middle of the platform. In fact, the only thing that was outlined was the platform itself, and her hand again.

She spun around, making sure she hadn't missed anything. Other than herself, the platform was completely empty. She sweatdropped. "Um... where's the thing I used last time?" she asked, half to herself.

_Each challenge is unique._

"So you _can _hear me!" Aila shouted. The voice did not respond. Aila growled, annoyed. "Okay, well I'm at least going to need a hint for this one."

_Believe in yourself._

"...Believe in myself?" Aila asked, blinking. "Well, that's just the worst hint ever," she scoffed, rolling her eyes. "And what, exactly, am I supposed to _believe_ I can do?"

_Turn on the light._

This was getting her nowhere. Of course she believed she could turn on the light... as long as there was a clear way to do it. How in the world was she supposed to 'turn on the light' without a switch?

_Hurry._

"Don't rush me," Aila growled, getting more annoyed by the second. Not only was this voice unhelpful, but now it was _pestering_ her too?

Suddenly, Aila had the urge to look to the side. When she did, she saw two glowing yellow eyes moving towards her. So _that's_ why the voice wanted her to hurry. Aila wasn't worried though. She could handle one measly Heartless! Last time she had to have defeated at least ten. All she had to do was take one swing with her weapon and...

Wait, where _was _her weapon?

"Ah! Hey, this isn't fair!" she complained, backing away from the approaching Heartless. "Last time you gave me a weapon! Where is it?"

_Without light, it is useless._

"What?!" Aila shouted, beginning to panic. She had to find that switch, and fast. She spun around, planning to run to the edge of the platform and feel around for a switch, only to notice that there were more Heartless behind her. In fact, they were multiplying right before her eyes, being born out of the darkness, surrounding her. Aila screamed as they advanced on her, their only visible feature their hollow yellow eyes.

_If you linger in the darkness, you will be overwhelmed._

A Heartless leapt at her, and Aila barely dodged it, feeling its leg brush against her arm.

_Do not be overwhelmed._

Aila was frantic now, her closed eyes darting around as she desperately tried to locate a light switch, or a weapon. "I--I need help! Please!" she shouted desperately, dodging a few more pairs of eyes.

_Turn on the light._

"I can't!" she screamed, holding her hands in front of her face. Her heart was pounding frantically, probably egging on the Heartless even more.

_Believe in yourself._

The eyes closed in on her, and Aila could feel the Heartless as they brushed against her. She squeezed her eyes shut even tighter. This was it.

_Turn on the light._

"NO!" Aila yelled, just as the Heartless lunged. Suddenly, she saw a white flash, so bright that her closed eyes burned from the intensity.

And then, everything was still. After a few moments, Aila opened her eyes and blinked, trying to get the spots out of her vision.

"What... happened?" she asked, looking around. Everything was visible now. She was on the same stained glass as before, and the light seemed even brighter now than it had the first time she had been there. The entire platform was empty now; all of the Heartless had simply vanished. Confused, she looked down at her hand and yelped in surprise. Her right hand was encased in white light. She held it in front of her to look at it. As she moved her hand, her shadow on the platform shifted with it. "The light source... is me?" she whispered, waving her hand back and forth as her shadow swayed from side to side behind her.

In another instant, her left hand was lit as well, causing her shadow to split. Aila stared at her hands and the pure, sparkling light surrounding them.

_Do not be afraid._

Aila looked up, feeling oddly calm. "I'm not."

KHKHKHKHKH

That's it for this chapter. Please read and review! I forgot to say that last time...


	3. Fight On

Hey again! Sooo I haven't updated in like four months… oops. College is more time consuming than I thought it would be. But, the good news is, I have the story practically all planned out now! I just… haven't written it down… Heh…

Anyways, that's enough of that. On with the next chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts II or any of the character in Kingdom Hearts II. I only own Aila and her family.

"_A fight is not won by one punch or kick. Either learn to endure or hire a bodyguard." -- Bruce Lee_

Chapter 3: Fight On

Aila sighed.

It had been hours since she'd woken up from her latest dream, but it was still all she could think about. She didn't understand what it meant. Was it some kind of riddle that she was supposed to figure out? A clue? A random nightmare?

Or maybe...

Aila stared at her hands, opening and closing them slowly, searching for anything out of the ordinary. Was it possible that she could really...?

Aila shook her head. No, that was impossible. Light did not appear from her hands in real life. It had only been a dream. A really annoying, crazy, confusing dream.

...Inside another dream.

And yet, it had seemed so real... the gentle warmth of the light on her fingertips, the jolt of energy she felt surge through her body... it was like nothing she'd ever experienced before.

And she wanted to feel it again. She _needed_ to.

It was this strange longing for that exhilarating feeling that had been haunting her all morning.

"Is everything alright?"

Startled, Aila looked up to find Aerith sitting next to her. They were all at Merlin's house, everyone except for Aila keeping busy with some job or another. Or at least, they had been. It seemed that Yuffie and Leon were off somewhere else now. Seeing as Aila had no idea how any of the technology in this world worked, there wasn't much she could do to help them. So, instead, she'd been sitting in a corner by the door, out of the way, dwelling on her thoughts for hours.

Aila smiled a little at Aerith. "Yeah, why?"

Aerith shrugged. "You seem distracted."

"Sorry," Aila sighed, pulling her knees close to her body. "I guess I am, a little."

Aila leaned her head back against the wall with another sigh. "Aerith?"

"Hmm?" Aerith answered, watching Cid grumbling at his computer.

"Have you ever dreamed something that seemed so real, that you weren't sure if it was really a dream at all?"

Aerith smiled a little. "A few times." She glanced at Aila. "That's what's bothering you?" Aila nodded. "What did you dream?"

"Well..." Aila paused. Maybe she should leave out the part about the voice this time. It seemed to concern them a bit the last time she'd mentioned hearing voices...

"I was in this really dark place," she began carefully. "I couldn't see anything. Then all of a sudden these Heartless started to attack me. I had nothing to fight with, and there were so many of them..." Aila shivered. She had forgotten how terrifying that part of the dream had been. Shaking her head, she continued. "They were about to finish me, when all of a sudden there was this bright flash, and I felt... warm." Warm didn't really do the feeling justice, but it was the only word she could find to explain it at the moment. "That's when I noticed... my hands... they were _glowing_. And all the heartless were gone, just like that! It was... it was incredible," Aila finished, looking up at the ceiling.

Aerith thought for a while, saying nothing. Aila closed her eyes, trying to get back some sense of that wonderful feeling.

"What do you know about dreams?" Aerith asked suddenly.

Aila raised an eyebrow, confused. "Um… they happen when you're asleep…?"

"Yes, usually that's the case," Aerith said with a small smile, leaning back against the wall as well. "Dreams are created from our subconscious. They aren't created out of thin air. So, there must be something to prompt them, a seed of an idea already existing in our minds in order for them to take shape. In that case, there must be a spark of conscious thought in dreams as well, correct?"

"I guess," Aila said, trying to understand the point of Aerith's explanation. It was kind of confusing her.

"So then, perhaps they are not purely imagination, but a fantastical way for our hidden ideas and truths to communicate with us."

"So dreams are trying to tell us something." Aila paused. She'd had some pretty crazy dreams before; she remembered one having something to do with dancing hamsters wearing little top hats…

"Not all dreams," Aerith said, as if reading Aila's mind. "Some dreams are pure fantasy, created solely from the depths of our imagination. But there are some dreams that _feel_ as if they're something more than just fantasy, making an impression on our very hearts. These are the dreams we cannot ignore."

Aila was silent for a while, letting Aerith's words sink in. "So... do you think that this dream... the dream I had... was something more than imagination?"

Aerith smiled and put her hand on Aila's shoulder. "That is something you must decide for yourself."

At that moment, the door flew open, making Aila jump.

"Hey, Aila!" Yuffie shouted as she and Leon entered the house. "Come on, I've got a job for you!"

"Huh? But, what can I do? I don't know how any of this stuff works..." Aila said, gesturing to the computer.

"You don't need to!" Yuffie grabbed Aila and pulled her to her feet, placing a small device in her hand. "Here, you'll need this."

Aila examined the tiny object. It looked kind of like an earpiece. "What is it?"

"It's your communication device," Yuffie explained, putting her own in her ear. "This way, I'll be able to hear you!"

"And so will we," Leon added, looking at whatever Cid was working on.

Aila was now thoroughly confused. "What exactly do you want me to do?" she asked warily. She was getting a bad feeling about this.

"You and I are going to check out the new defense system!" Yuffie said with a huge grin.

The defense system. Aila tried to remember back to when she'd last played the game, which had unfortunately been quite a while ago. 'Defense system, defense system... Ah! Those silver ball things that attack the Heartless!' Aila had always found the defense system rather pointless when she played the game. 'Wait, didn't that thing go evil at some point and start attacking the people _fighting_ the Heartless?'

Aila frowned. "It's not going to attack us, is it?"

Yuffie laughed. "Ha! Oh Aila, you are so silly."

Aila blushed and crossed her arms. "No I'm not! I just want to make sure it won't think we're the enemy, that's all."

"Of course not!" Cid said, spinning around in his chair to face Aila. "I've designed this thing perfectly! It only attacks Heartless. The idea that it would attack _us_, ha!"

Aila's blush increased. 'They'll be sorry when the MCP takes over...'

Leon smacked Cid on the back of the head. "That's enough." He then turned to Aila. "Actually, that's they reason we need you and Yuffie to check it out. We're still trying to get all the bugs out, so we need to make sure it's working the way it should." He glanced at Cid, who was rubbing his head and grumbling. "We need to be aware of any and all _problems_ with the program."

"There ain't no _problems_ with my program!" Cid grumbled, glaring at Leon.

"We don't know that," Leon said sternly. The two glared for a moment before Cid looked away and crossed his arms in a huff.

"Come on Aila, we'd better get going," Yuffie said, making her way toward the door.

"Press down on the microphone if you want to say something to us," Aerith said as she stood, brushing imaginary dust from her dress. "You'll also be able to hear us if we want to say something to you."

"Okay, thanks," Aila said, smiling sincerely at Aerith. She was beginning to find Aerith to be the easiest to get along with here.

Aila ran to catch up with Yuffie, who was already turning the corner on the way to the Bailey.

"Yuffie! Wait!" Aila yelled. Even though she was somewhat familiar with the area, everything looked different in real life, and she didn't want to get lost. Especially if a Heartless showed up.

Yuffie was waiting at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the Bailey. "Hurry up, slow poke! We gotta get to the Bailey pronto!"

Aila caught up and they made their way up the stairs. "Hey, where is everybody?" Aila asked, noticing how empty it was.

"People don't generally come to this side of town unless they have to," Yuffie answered, shrugging.

"Why not?"

"Because, this is where most of the Heartless are, of course!"

Aila looked around. Now that she thought about it, she hadn't seen any Heartless yet… well, except for in her dreams. "But I haven't seen any..."

"That's because of us," Yuffie said with a smirk. "We've been able to keep them pretty much contained away from the main part of the town, but it's becoming a bit much for us. That's why we need this defense system."

When they finally reached to top of the stairs, Aila looked back over the rooftops. "So, people are generally safe down there then?"

"Generally," Yuffie agreed. "Our main goal is to keep the Market Place clear, since that's where the most people congregate."

As they neared the entrance to the Bailey, Aila began to get a little nervous. "Uh, Yuffie, you know I don't really know how to fight, right?"

"Really?" Yuffie asked, not seeming at all concerned.

"What, did you think I could?" Aila asked incredulously.

"Well, I assumed. It's not very hard," Yuffie said, raising an eyebrow.

Aila frowned and blushed once again. The most fighting she'd ever done had been a few little playground brawls when she was younger, and it had _not_ been easy. And even that she hadn't done in years.

"Well," Yuffie continued, "if the system works the way it should, you won't have to fight at all." They walked into the cool shadows of the Bailey.

"And if it doesn't work the way it should?" Aila asked, glancing around anxiously.

"Here, let me show you how to work this thing," Yuffie said, ignoring Aila's question. Yuffie turned so they were facing each other and placed her hand to her earpiece. "Uh, Aila, you kind of have to put yours on for it to work."

"What? Oh, right," Aila said. She placed the nearly forgotten earpiece in her right ear, as Yuffie had done with hers. It felt odd there, and Aila had to fight the urge to mess with it.

"Alright, so, like Aerith said, you just press it..." She pressed on her earpiece and Aila heard her own crackle slightly. "Can you hear me now?" She asked, and Aila heard her voice both in front of her and in her ear. Aila nodded. "And you guys can hear me too, right?" Yuffie asked, still pressing her earpiece.

"Yes, Yuffie, we hear you." Aila jumped at the sound of Leon's voice. The reception was surprisingly clear. It sounded like he was right next to her, not back at Merlin's house. "What about you two? Can you hear me? Both of you answer."

Aila pressed down on her earpiece. "Uh, y-yeah, I can hear you," she said, unsure if it had actually worked.

"Loud and clear!" Yuffie seconded.

"Good. Now, Aila, you've never seen the system before, so we'll show you what it looks like before you two get to work."

Aila yelped as a bright circle with a silver ball in the middle appeared in front of her with an odd _'beep!'_ After a moment, light exploded from the circle, making the ball jump into the air with another _'beep!'_

Leon's voice came through the earpiece again. "The system is meant to help you. It will lock onto a target and attack, sending the target flying into the air."

Aila nodded, even though Leon couldn't see it. She of course knew all of this already, but she wasn't at all opposed to a refresher course. The circle disappeared, and the Bailey was quiet again.

"Alright then, get to it." The communication cut off.

"Rude much?" Yuffie mumbled, crossing her arms.

"So, um, are we checking the system here?" Aila asked, looking around. The shadows were making her very nervous.

"Nah, we've gotta get to the Restoration Site. It's right down here," Yuffie said, heading out a door to the right and walking towards another set of stairs. Aila followed, noticing that the stairs weren't damaged like they were in the game. Yet.

As they neared the bottom, Yuffie stopped. "Okay, keep your wits about you. The Heartless can be tricky." Aila nodded, swallowing hard.

"Stay close to Yuffie, Aila," she heard Aerith say in her ear.

The two of them walked for a few seconds, moving slowly and cautiously through the Restoration Site. When they reached the middle of the Site, Yuffie stopped.

"Here we go," she said quietly. Aila followed her gaze and gasped. A Shadow rose from the ground and took shape, the creature's eyes darting back and forth between the two girls, as if deciding who to attack first.

Suddenly, another circle of light appeared and raced toward the little Heartless. Once it reached its target, the circle locked on and fired, sending the Heartless flying into the air. It landed with a small 'thud' only to be thrown into the air once again. This time, it disappeared before hitting the ground. For a moment, Aila wondered why its heart didn't rise into the air like it did in the game before remembering that only a Keyblade could free the hearts.

"Alright!" Yuffie shouted, throwing her fist into the air. She pushed her communicator. "Worked like a charm."

"Aw yeah! I told ya it would!" Cid shouted, sounding happier than Aila had ever heard him.

"How many?" came Leon's voice.

"Just one," Yuffie responded. "But it made quick work of it!"

Out of the corner of her eye, Aila saw movement. Slowly, she turned her head, though she already knew what she would see.

More Heartless, many more Heartless, were coming out of the cracks in the wall, their little bodies swaying back and forth with excitement.

"Uh, Yuffie," Aila said nervously, tapping Yuffie's arm.

"What is it kid?" She asked, her hand still on her earpiece as she examined the spot the first Heartless had just been.

"I think we have a problem."

"What do you..." Yuffie looked up, her words dying in her mouth as she saw the growing amount of Heartless. "Crud."

"What? What's wrong?" Leon asked.

Aila pressed down on her earpiece. "Heartless. A lot of them."

The defense system had started to kick in, but there were only two circles, and it took each of them two hits before a Heartless disappeared.

"Is the system working?" Cid asked, sounding concerned. Aila wondered idly if he was concerned about her and Yuffie getting attacked by Heartless or about the system working correctly.

She bet that it was mostly the latter.

"Yeah, but really slowly," Aila said, backing away from the creatures as they trained their beady eyes on her.

"Can you guys crank it up or something?" Yuffie asked, readying her shuriken. Aila was painfully aware of the fact that she was defenseless.

"We're trying," Leon said, sounding concerned.

The system picked up speed a little, but it was still no match for the continuously growing army of Heartless.

"That's as high as it goes," Cid said, and Aila's heart sank.

"Yuffie," Aila said slowly, her tone slightly desperate.

"Remember, fighting's easy," Yuffie said. "Just stay close, and don't let them take you down."

"Thanks, I'll do that," Aila said, annoyed.

"She can't fight?!" Cid asked, alarm evident in his voice.

"Fighting is easy," Yuffie said again, avoiding actually answering Cid's question.

"Yuffie, I don't even have a weapon!" Aila said, panic very clear in her voice now.

"I'll be right there," Leon said quickly, and Aila could practically hear him running for the door.

A Heartless lunged, and Aila stepped back quickly, barely avoiding it. Two more jumped at the girls, forcing them to jump in opposite directions to avoid them.

"Yuffie!" Aila yelled, panicked. They were separated.

"Fight, Aila!" Yuffie shouted, throwing her shuriken at the approaching Heartless.

"I can't!" Aila yelled, dodging another attack. In her rush, she tripped on a loose stone and fell back, landing with a yelp. The Heartless looked a lot larger from the floor. "Yuffie!" she screamed again, raising her arm as a Heartless lunged.

Suddenly, Leon was in front of her, Gunblade in hand. He sliced through the attacking Heartless like they were nothing, and Aila couldn't help but be impressed with his skill.

"Are you alright?" he asked, glancing back at Aila.

She nodded, standing quickly. "Y-yeah, thanks," she said shakily.

"Stay behind me," Leon advised, and Aila was happy to oblige. She watched as he and Yuffie fought against the Shadows and warned them when enemies attempted to sneak up on them.

Part of her was wishing that she could help out, but most of her was just wishing to wake up in her own world, safe and sound. 'Please, please, please... I'm ready to wake up now... I'm ready to go home...'

Leon yelled, and Aila's head snapped up. A Heartless had finally gotten a good hit past Leon's Gunblade.

"Leon!" Aila yelled.

"Aila!" Yuffie's voice was strained as she continued fighting. "Fight!"

"But I--"

"You've got to fight!"

Aila's eyes began to water with frustration. "With what?!"

At that moment, a bright light flashed, causing Aila to stumble back and fall once again. When the light cleared, Aila looked down. "No way..."

In her right hand she clutched the staff she'd used in her very first dream about the Heartless. It shone with white light, just as it had before, and the Heartless closest to it shrank away with a hiss.

An amazing warmth ran up Aila's arm, and electric energy pulsed through her veins. Her fingers tingled as she tightened them around the staff, the light pulsing even brighter.

It was even better than in her dream. The beauty of this new feeling took her breath away; it was so real, so pure, that for a moment Aila forgot everything else.

Suddenly, a Heartless to her right leapt at her. Without thinking, Aila threw her hand to the side, and the staff cut through the Heartless with ease.

"Wow," Aila whispered, staring at the staff a moment longer before looking up at the Heartless surrounding her. They kept their distance, their instinct to be afraid temporarily overwhelming their instinct to attack. Aila smirked and stood, her new weapon light in her hand. "Okay. I'm ready now."

With that, the Heartless abandoned their fear and attacked, leaping at Aila from all sides. Aila spun, her staff making quick work of the first Heartless to reach her. One lunged from her left, and Aila ducked, thrusting her staff through its feeble form as it sailed over her head. Two more appeared from the ground behind her, and she quickly slashed them away. The fight was exhilarating, and with each movement that exhilarating warmth pumped through her, giving her energy, egging her on.

Soon every Heartless had been defeated. Leon, Yuffie, and Aila all stood, panting, as they watched the last one fade away into nothing.

Suddenly, Aila found herself being nearly squeezed to death by Yuffie in one of the tightest hugs she had ever experienced.

"I knew you could do it, Aila! You see, I believed in you, and you could! I don't know how, but you did it! Didn't I tell you fighting was easy? Didn't I? Oh, you were so great!"

"Yuffie... can't... breathe..." Aila gasped. Yuffie promptly dropped her and she landed on the floor, breathing in as much air as she could.

"Wasn't that amazing, Leon?" Yuffie continued. "I mean, she said she didn't fight, but I didn't believe it! No sir, not for one second! I could tell just by looking at her that she was a fighter, and I was right! Did I tell you or did I tell you!"

"All right, Yuffie, that's enough," Leon said, though he was smiling a bit as well. He offered a hand to Aila. "Nice work, kid."

Aila took his hand and he pulled her up. "Thanks," she said grinning, her cheeks still flushed from the excitement of her first real battle. "Are you okay?" she asked, remembering that he'd been hurt.

Leon held up an empty potion bottle. "Of course." Aila smiled. "So," Leon said, glancing at the staff Aila held. The light was fading, and Aila could feel the warmth inside her cooling, the adrenaline from the battle wearing off. "Where did that come from?"

Aila lifted the staff in front of her and examined it closely. "Honestly... I have no idea. I used it in a dream once, though."

"That's strange," Yuffie said, crossing her arms.

Leon nodded.

"Y'know, you were great and all, but you could definitely use some practice, Aila," Yuffie said, putting her hands on her hips. "It seemed like you were just letting the Heartless hit the weapon a lot of the time, instead of the other way around."

Aila frowned. "That's because I was." Yuffie raised an eyebrow. "What? It's not like I've done this before or anything," Aila said defensively, crossing her arms.

"Never ever?" Yuffie asked, her eyes widening. Aila shook her head.

"So you took a girl who'd never fought before into an area densely populated with Heartless _without a weapon_?" Leon said, his eyes narrowing. "You told me she knew how to fight."

"I thought she did!" Yuffie said, waving her arms in front of her defensively.

"But I _told_ you I didn't," Aila said.

"Yeah, but not until we were already on our way here."

"I didn't think I needed to before then!"

"And besides, I just thought you were being modest!"

"_Why _would you think that?! When I said 'I don't know how to fight,' I honestly meant '_I don't know how to fight_!'"

"I don't know what everyone's getting so upset about," Yuffie said with a huff. "The Heartless are defeated. Everything's fine."

"Luckily," Leon said, still glaring.

"Fine then," Yuffie said, turning to face Aila again. Her expression was suddenly one of excitement, which frightened Aila quite a bit. "Let me make it up to you."

"How?" Aila asked carefully.

"I'll train you!"

"What?" Aila said in shock just as Leon growled the same thing.

"Yeah! I'll teach you how to fight the Heartless!" Yuffie's eyes glinted in a way that looked somewhat maniacal. Aila gulped.

"Uh, Yuffie, you really don't have to do that," she said, rubbing the back of her neck.

Yuffie grinned. "I know. That's what makes me so nice!"

Aila looked to Leon for help, but he just sighed and shook his head. "Come on, let's get back to the Borough," he said, and Aila knew he wasn't going to do anything to stop her from being Yuffie's pupil. She was doomed.

KHKHKHKHKH

"No, no, no, I said to go _left_," Yuffie scolded for what must have been the dozenth time.

"I _did_," Aila said, trying not to lose her temper. She had begun her "training" with Yuffie in front of the Market Place about an hour ago, and so far it had not been going well. Yuffie's teaching style was… quite frankly, insane. Mostly it consisted of Yuffie throwing a bunch of things rapid fire at Aila, who was supposed to knock them away. Unfortunately, Aila ended up just getting hit by a majority of the items. Thankfully she'd been able to talk Yuffie out of throwing ninja stars…

Oh, and she was blindfolded.

"Yuffie, maybe I should try to do this _without_ the blindfold first," she suggested once again.

"That would completely defeat the purpose of the exercise!" Yuffie exclaimed. "You're supposed to _sense_ the danger. You may be in a situation where you can't see what's coming, and you need to be prepared!"

Aila groaned and smacked her head in annoyance. It was hopeless.

"Soon you'll be ready to try it on a building!"

"WHAT?!" Aila exclaimed.

"You need to be aware of your surroundings. It you can manage not to fall off the building, then fighting on solid ground will be a cinch!"

Aila was horrified. "You're insane," she said, grabbing at the blindfold and trying to tear it off her face.

"Hey, wait, we're not done yet!" Yuffie shouted.

Aila threw down the blindfold and scowled at her. "I need a break," she said as she turned back towards Merlin's.

"Fine, you've got ten minutes!" Yuffie called after her. Aila didn't respond as she shoved her hands into her pockets and continued walking away.

"Stupid ninja," Aila mumbled, kicking a pebble as she walked. "How would she like it if I threw stuff at _her_ for an hour?"

"Aila? What happened to you?"

Aila looked up to see a concerned looking Aerith in front of the house. No wonder she was worried; Aila's arms were covered in bruises as a result of being hit by random flying objects. In fact, Aila was sure that most of her body was probably covered in bruises by now.

"Yuffie," Aila said bitterly.

"Yuffie?" Aerith asked.

"Yeah, she's supposedly 'training' me," Aila said, putting air quotes around the word "training".

"Ah," Aerith said with a small smile. She then reached into her pocket and pulled out a potion bottle. "Here, you'll feel better in a minute."

Aila took the bottle gratefully and drank it all in one gulp, her bruises fading almost instantly. It was amazing how quickly that stuff worked. "Thanks."

"So, she's teaching you how to fight?" Aerith asked, clasping her hands behind her back.

"No, she's throwing things at me," Aila said with a scowl.

"Hm, well I'm sure there's a point to that."

"No, there's not. She probably just wanted to throw things at me and decided to call it 'training' to trick me into it."

Aerith smiled. "Aila, I know it's hard to remember at times, but Yuffie is a very skilled fighter. She has a very… unique fighting style, and so it's not a surprise that her training style would be unique as well."

"Crazy," Aila corrected. "The word is crazy."

"It may seem that way now, but you've got to trust her." Aerith put a hand on Aila's shoulder. "Just listen to her, and do what she tells you. Even if it doesn't make sense right now, I'm sure it will pay off in the long run."

Aila thought for a minute. "I know she's a great ninja and everything, but, Aerith, haven't you ever heard the saying 'Those who can, do, those who can't, teach'?"

"She may not be the best teacher, but you will learn a lot from her."

Aila sighed. "If you say so…"

Aerith smiled. "Now, I'm sure you're not done training for the day, right? That doesn't sound like Yuffie."

"No, I was just taking a break." Aila sighed once again. "I should probably get back…"

Aerith nodded. "We'll go out to dinner tonight to celebrate your first day of training, okay?"

Aila grimaced. "If I survive that long." She then smiled at Aerith. "Thank you, Aerith."

"Of course," Aerith said. "Have fun."

"Sure, sure," Aila said, walking back in the direction of the Market Place.

KHKHKHKHKHKH

"So, you came back," Yuffie said when Aila rounded the corner.

"Yep," Aila said, wondering if she shouldn't have just stayed away like she'd originally planned.

"Great! Now then, I've been thinking that you need to be more balanced while you fight. You're falling all over the place! So, now you have to do it with this on your head." She held out a book, and Aila groaned.

"Yuffie, I can't even balance this on my head while I'm standing still!"

"Practice practice practice!" Yuffie sang, placing the book on Aila's head. "Oh, and don't forget this!" she exclaimed, picking up he blindfold and covering Aila's eyes once again. Aila cursed internally; she'd hoped Yuffie had forgotten about the blindfold.

"Ready?" she heard Yuffie call.

Aila gulped. "No…"

"GO!"

KHKHKHKHKHKH

"Well, you definitely need a lot more practice, but I really think we're getting somewhere."

Yuffie and Aila were sitting against the wall, practice having been declared officially over, much to Aila's relief. Aila leaned her head back and closed her eyes, fighting the urge to go to sleep right then and there.

"So, how're you liking Hollow Bastion?" Yuffie asked.

Aila opened her eyes. "It's… very different," she said, hugging her knees.

"You homesick?" Yuffie asked quietly, and Aila nodded.

"I'm… not dreaming, am I?" Aila asked, though it was really more of a statement then a question.

"I'm afraid not… did you think you were?" Yuffie asked, glancing at her.

Aila shrugged. "Yeah… I kind of still want to believe that I am, but… it's seeming less and less likely…" Aila sighed and buried her face in her hands. "How did this happen? Everything seemed so normal… There was no warning…"

Yuffie put her hand on Aila's shoulder and squeezed it gently. "It'll be okay, Aila…"

"You don't really think that my world was destroyed, do you?" Aila asked in a whisper, looking up at Yuffie.

Yuffie hesitated. "I… I really don't know."

Aila pulled her knees closer to her body. If her world had been destroyed, then did that mean that everyone she knew was… dead? Her friends, her brother and sister, her mom and dad…

But she had survived. So that meant that there was a chance that some other people had made it too, right? Aila thought back to Traverse Town in the first Kingdom Hearts. That was the place where people would end up when their world was destroyed. 'But not everyone made it there,' Aila thought with a frown. 'It was only people with strong hearts, like Sora. Everyone else disappeared…'

But what defined a 'strong heart'? In Aila's opinion, all of her friends and family had strong hearts. But she was biased; what if they weren't all as strong as she thought they were?

"How are worlds destroyed exactly?" Aila asked.

Yuffie thought for a minute. "Well, it seems to happen when the Heartless find the world's keyhole. Once the keyhole's been corrupted with darkness, the world just kind of… falls apart."

"But I didn't see any Heartless before I came here," Aila said, confused.

"Maybe you just weren't looking for them. The Heartless can be sneaky, hiding in the shadows. And if they happened to find the keyhole fairly quickly, then they may have corrupted it before anyone even knew that something was wrong."

"Oh," Aila said with a sigh. "So there's no way to stop it then?"

"Maybe not for _you_," Yuffie said with a smirk. "But if the Keybearer seals the keyhole before they Heartless can infect if, then the world will be safe!" Yuffie paused and put a hand to her head.

"Yuffie? You okay?" Aila asked.

"Oh, yeah, don't worry about it," Yuffie assured her, taking her hand away from her head and smiling. "I was just trying to remember something."

"What?"

"When I mentioned the Keybearer… It was like an image of someone popped into my mind, just for a second. Someone I think I know… but I can't remember who he is."

Aila blinked. Was she talking about Sora? How could she not remember him? "Yuffie, was it the Keybearer you were remembering?"

Yuffie furrowed her brow. "I… I think so. Things have been coming back to me over the past few days… I suddenly remembered that about a year ago, somebody had gone around locking the hearts of the worlds. That somebody must have been the Keybearer, since he's the only one who would be able to do that. I _think_ I knew him…" Yuffie sighed. "But I just can't remember."

Now Aila was thoroughly confused. Yuffie was definitely talking about Sora, but she didn't _know_ she was talking about Sora. How could she have forgotten him? After everything he'd done…

_Namine_.

Of course! Aila began to go over the storyline of Kingdom Hearts II in her head. Namine had to put all of Sora's memories back together because of what had happened in Chain of Memories. When she took his memories apart, it also affected the people who knew him, and their memories of him. Heck, even Kairi was having trouble remembering him at the beginning of the game!

So, if people still didn't remember him, that must mean that Sora was still asleep in Twilight Town. But, if Yuffie was starting to remember, then Namine must be close to finishing her restoration of Sora's memories, meaning that Sora would wake up soon. Which meant that soon he and Donald and Goofy would be coming to Hollow Bastion…

And Aila would get to meet them.

Aila had to fight back a grin at the thought of meeting the infamous trio. Not only would she get to meet THE Keybearer and main character of one of the greatest video games of all time, but she would also get to meet two of her favorite classic Disney characters! Donald, Goofy, and Mickey had always been some of her favorite characters, which was part of the reason she loved Kingdom Hearts so much.

Of course, meeting them was all she expected. She'd read fanfics about people from her world being sent into Kingdom Hearts, fighting alongside Sora and the gang, sometimes bearing a Keyblade of their very own, or even winning the heart of the Keybearer himself. Aila always hated that; first of all, SORA was THE Keybearer, not some stupid random girl from her world. And second, Sora liked _Kairi_. It's not like he would completely forget his feelings for her just because some new girl showed up.

No, Aila definitely did not want to be like the girls in those stories. And besides, she couldn't even fight, as Yuffie had made painfully clear in the past few hours.

So that was it. She would meet them, and maybe even get to hang out with them a little whenever they came to visit Hollow Bastion. And she would get to fight with them in the big battle that took place there, which had always been her favorite part of the game. But, seeing as this wasn't exactly a game anymore, she found her stomach churning a bit as the thought of such a huge battle. She'd have to keep that in mind while she was training…

Turning to look at Yuffie, Aila smiled. "I'm sure you'll remember him soon, Yuffie."

Yuffie smiled back. "If you say so. Now can you walk back yet or am I gonna have to leave you here?"

Aila scowled. "You wouldn't leave me."

"Hmm, well, seeing as you would probably become Heartless food, I guess I won't." Yuffie stood. "But seriously, I'm not going to carry you, so get up."

"Alright alright," Aila said, standing up very slowly. "If you'd just brought a potion or something I wouldn't be having this problem."

"Well I didn't realize you'd be _that_ bad."

"Hey!" Aila yelled. Yuffie just laughed and ran off towards the Burrow.

KHKHKHKHKH

Sick of waiting for Sora and the gang to show??

Yeah, me too. So I'm pretty sure they'll be appearing in the next chapter. Finally!

And if you're thinking that Aila is gonna get a Keyblade, don't hold your breath. And she will NOT be paired with Sora. Basically, I'm going to try not to mess up the KH world as much as possible. No breaking up cannon pairings or anything like that. However, if people would like to see Aila paired with someone NOT already in a pairing, then I may consider it…

Thanks for reading! Please review!

~ Fade


	4. Reinforcements

Hey, pretty fast update right? I'm gonna try and update at least once every two weeks, since I have a little more free time now.

Disclaimer: I own nothing except for Aila and her family.

"_The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing." – Albert Einstein_

Chapter 4: Reinforcements

Aila slowly opened her eyes to the morning light flooding through her window. She yawned and rolled over, pulling the covers up over her head. She could hear Yuffie banging around in the kitchen, probably making breakfast…

Wait, what?

Aila sat up slowly, casting a puzzled glance in the direction of the door. Since when did Yuffie cook? And even more curious, why hadn't she come in and woken Aila up at the crack of dawn like usual? Not that Aila wasn't happy that she'd actually gotten the chance to wake up on her own; it was a nice change from Yuffie's usual method of waking her by shouting in her ear… or throwing pillows…

Deciding to investigate this strange break from the usual morning routine, Aila stood up and made her way into the main room. What she saw surprised her.

Yuffie really _was_ in the kitchen. And she wasn't just making cereal or something; Aila was able to spot what looked like eggs, and bacon, and… was Yuffie flipping pancakes?

"Dammit!" Yuffie cursed, trying to scrape a pancake onto a plate. "Stupid dumb pan… nonstick coating my ass… oh, Aila!" She grinned, finally noticing Aila in the room. "You're up! Finally, jeez."

"Um, Yuffie? What are you doing?" Aila asked carefully.

"What does it look like I'm doing, silly? I'm making you breakfast!"

"…But… why?" Aila asked, now thoroughly confused.

"Because today is special!" Yuffie exclaimed, still trying to scrape the pancake out of the pan.

"It is?"

Yuffie grinned triumphantly as the mangled pancake finally plopped onto the plate. "Yep."

Aila frowned. What was so special about today? She wracked her brain as she made her way to the table and sat down. From closer up, the eggs and bacon appeared to be rather burned… Aila sweatdropped.

"You really don't know what today is, do you?" Yuffie asked, placing a stack of pancake pieces on the table (they had obviously all been scraped off of the pan in chunks). Aila shook her head, and Yuffie grinned. "As of today, you've been in Hollow Bastion for exactly one month. Pretty cool, right?"

Aila blinked. Had it really been a month? "Wow… uh, thanks Yuffie," she said with a smile. "You didn't need to do all this because something so silly…"

"But it's not silly!" Yuffie protested, placing her hands on her hips. "This is a very important day, and it is going to be recognized." She then glanced at the food and frowned. "Unfortunately, cooking is harder than I thought it would be… things burned a lot faster than I thought they would…"

Aila laughed and took a piece of bacon. "That's alright. Bacon is better burned anyways." She grinned, thinking of how her mom would always burn the bacon on purpose; that was how Aila and her siblings liked it.

Yuffie beamed. "Great!" She then took her own plate and loaded it with food, rambling on about some cooking show she'd watched.

One month. Aila munched on her bacon as she absorbed that thought. It seemed like just yesterday she'd been living a normal, carefree life with her family. And yet, now that she thought about it, so much had happened in a month.

Aila's fighting skills had improved dramatically. She was still a novice, but at least she could hold her own against the Heartless that roamed around town. She was even able to patrol on her own now, as long as she had her communication device on at all times. The Nobodies gave her a bit more trouble; they had shown up about two weeks ago, and since they could plan and think ahead, they were much more skilled than the Heartless. But she was getting better, and by this point she could defeat a small group of Dusks all by herself.

She'd also been learning about Gummi ships. When she wasn't training with Yuffie, Aila could usually be found going over blueprints with Cid. The ships were fascinating to her, and building them came almost naturally to her. Cid was convinced that she was going to become a Gummi ship engineer someday.

But most significant to Aila was what had happened about a week ago. Yuffie had been remembering more and more about Sora, Donald, and Goofy every day, but her memories hadn't been coming back as quickly as Aila had hoped. But then one day, she suddenly remembered everything. And not just Yuffie; the rest of the Restoration Committee remembered the trio as well, and all at the exact same time. It was kind of spooky. Ever since then, Leon had insisted that they were going to show up very soon.

The fact that everyone remembered Sora now meant that the game had definitely begun. It was both exciting and terrifying to Aila, and she wondered how long it would be before the more powerful Heartless and Nobodies showed up. And she couldn't forget the Organization…

But, thankfully, she was pretty sure she wouldn't have to fight any of the Organization members. Those were Sora's fights; the Committee members only fought Nobodies and Heartless.

The most pressing issue facing the Committee at the moment, however, was the alarming rate at which the Heartless and Nobody population was growing. No matter how many the Committee members defeated, their numbers seemed to grow everyday, no doubt building up the huge battle that Aila knew was inevitable. The battle at Hollow Bastion had been fun in the game, but the idea of having to be involved in it in real life made Aila's stomach flip.

After eating practically all the bacon (and forcing down a bit of burnt eggs and charred pancake bits to be polite), Aila left to begin her patrol. She strolled through the Market Place, waving at Huey, Dewey, and Louie as she passed. She'd made quick friends with the three brothers, especially since they seemed to be some of the only kids living in Hollow Bastion. As much as she loved hanging out with the Committee members, it was nice to talk to people her age every now and then.

"Why good morning, lass," Scrooge McDuck said, tipping his hat at Aila as she passed.

"Morning Scrooge," Aila replied with a smile. "How's your ice-cream flavor coming?"

"Not well, I'm afraid," he sighed. "It seems that no matter how hard I try, I just cannot remember that recipe."

"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll get it eventually," Aila assured. She really did know for a fact that he would; she'd seen it in the credits of the game.

"Thank you for your support, my dear," Scrooge said, smiling gratefully. "When I do get it right, you'll be the first to taste it. Tell you what, I'll even give you the first one for free!"

"Wow, thank you!" Aila said grinning. She didn't know Scrooge McDuck gave anything away for free. "Ah, I've got to go. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Of course, lassie. Don't work too hard now," Scrooge advised.

"I won't," Aila laughed and waved. She loved all the Disney characters she'd met so far, and their ability to make her smile was amazing. No matter how upset she was, talking to them always made her feel better.

As she made her way down the stairs, a clock chimed in the distance. "Ten?" Aila exclaimed as she counted the chimes. "Oh no! I'm late!" She leapt down the last few stairs and broke into a run. Her shift started at 9:45. Leon was going to kill her!

"Mornin' Aila! You're runnin' awfully late today!" Cid shouted as Aila sped past Merlin's.

"I know!" She yelled back, rounding the corner and flying as fast as she could up the stairs to the Bailey.

Leon was waiting for her as she reached the top of the stairs.

"You're late," he said, his arms crossed and a none too happy look on his face.

"I know, I'm sorry," Aila apologized, staring at the floor.

"You're the one who wanted your own patrol, remember? You agreed that you'd be on time."

"I know, it will never happen again," Aila promised, cursing Yuffie and her stupid celebratory breakfast.

Leon clapped his hand on Aila's shoulder as he passed her and headed down the stairs, indicating that he forgave her. Aila sighed in relief and headed into the Bailey.

KHKHKHKH

Aila sighed and leaned against a wall, exhausted. The Heartless' and Nobodies' numbers were still growing alright; they were everywhere! Thankfully, her shift was over, and her second shift wasn't until that evening.

Remembering that Cid had promised to show her some new Gummi blueprints today, Aila decided to start making her way back to Merlin's. She'd already been out an extra fifteen minutes to make up for being late that morning and was starting to get pretty hungry. Hopefully Yuffie hadn't planned on making lunch too… there was only so much burned food she could eat in one day.

"Well well, look who finally decided to show up," Cid commented as Aila entered Merlin's house.

"She's running late today," Leon told him, not taking his eyes off the computer.

Aila scowled. "I was making up the fifteen minutes I missed this morning," she explained. Cid just smirked and rolled his eyes.

"It's not like you to be late, Aila. Is everything alright?" Aerith asked.

"Yeah, it's nothing like that," Aila said, rubbing the back of her neck. "Yuffie made breakfast this morning and I lost track of time, that's all."

Aila jumped as Cid suddenly started laughing hysterically. "Yuffie… made breakfast? And you actually _ate it_?" he asked between laughs.

Aila nodded. "She said it was to celebrate the fact that I've been here a month."

"That's right, it was a month ago today, wasn't it," Leon said, finally turning away from the computer.

"That _is_ exciting," Aerith said, clapping her hands together.

"It is?" Aila asked. She really didn't see why it was such a big deal. A month wasn't really all that long.

"Well sure! A month of Yuffie's training and you're still standing? That deserves some kind of medal!" Cid exclaimed, earning him a scowl from Aerith. Aila had to admit he had a point.

"You've progressed surprisingly fast," Leon commented, crossing his arms. "Maybe Yuffie's a better teacher than I thought." Cid snorted and rolled his eyes. Suddenly, Aila's stomach grumbled, making her blush.

"Looks like Yuffie's cooking wasn't enough to tide you over, eh?" Cid asked with a smirk.

Aila sweatdropped. "Well, most of it was kind of burned…"

Cid chuckled again and grabbed something from the floor next to the computer. "Here," he said, tossing the object to Aila, who caught it. She looked down.

"Yogurt?" She asked, surprised. A spoon was attached to the top.

"That oughta tide you over till lunch," Cid said.

"Thanks," Aila said gratefully, quickly pealing back the top of the yogurt. She really was hungry. "So do you just keep yogurt next to you at all times or something?" she asked, eating a spoonful.

"Nah, that's been here for weeks," Cid said, turning back to the computer. Aila's eyes widened in horror, the spoon still in her mouth.

"He's kidding," Aerith assured quickly, scowling at Cid. Aila sighed in relief.

"So, what are you working on?" she asked, walking up to look at the computer screen as well.

"Upgrades for the defense system," Leon said, studying the screen at well. Aila nodded. The system had been improved quite a bit since she'd first seen it in action. In fact, she was pretty impressed with how well it worked. She was, however, apprehensive about too many upgrades; it would make it that much harder to deal with when the MCP took over.

"I still say we should boost it up in Sector Four," Cid said, typing away.

"Sector Four is under control as of now," Leon disagreed. "We should be focusing more on the residential areas. How were things looking today?" he asked, directing the question at Aila.

"Not good," Aila reported, the yogurt cup already almost empty. "I was fighting pretty much nonstop the entire time. I think the Bailey is clear for now, but that probably won't last long."

"It seems like those damn things come back every few minutes," Cid grumbled. "I bet the Bailey's full of 'em again already."

Aila frowned. All that work for nothing. "What'll we do if their numbers keep growing?" she asked worriedly. The Committee was putting all of their energy into keeping the Heartless and Nobodies as far away from the town as possible, but despite their efforts they seemed to get closer and closer to the residential areas every day.

"Whatever it takes to protect the town," Leon said roughly. Aila looked at him sadly. Aerith had told her that Leon blamed himself for what had happened to the town when Maleficent took over a few years ago. Now Leon was determined not to let anything like that happen again, no matter what. But as of right now, the Committee was losing the fight against the Heartless, and Aila could see how hard that was for him.

Aila was going to ask if it would help if she took on another shift or something, but before she had even opened her mouth she was interrupted by the sound of the door opening behind her.

"Meet the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee!"

They all turned, and Aila was pretty sure she nearly had a heart attack.

They had finally arrived.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy.

"We missed you!" Aerith said, overjoyed at the sight of the trio.

"Well, if you ain't in top shape!" Cid commented with a smirk. Aila shifted nervously, watching the scene unfold from a whole new perspective. She desperately tried to look indifferent, like she didn't recognize the people walking towards her; the Committee members had told her all about the trio, of course, but it would be very suspicious if she seemed to recognize them right away. Of course, it wouldn't be _that_ hard for her to figure it out even if she hadn't seen them before; she doubted that a duck, a dog, and a boy with extremely spiky hair all traveling together was very common, even in Hollow Bastion.

"I knew it," Leon said smugly.

"Knew what?" Sora asked. Aila stuck her spoon in her mouth to hide her smile when she heard his voice.

"A while back, everyone suddenly remembered you guys, all at the same time."

"You… remembered?" Sora asked, clearly confused. Suddenly, it hit him. "Wait! Does that mean you forgot about us!?"

"Thanks!" Donald exclaimed, annoyed, and Aila again had to fight the urge to start grinning like an idiot.

"So where've you guys been all this time?" Yuffie asked, changing the subject.

"We were sleepin'," Goofy said happily. Aila was now very concerned that she was going to burst into giggles any moment.

"Where? In cold storage?" Cid asked skeptically. The trio shifted uncomfortably, clearly nervous about how to explain when even they weren't sure what had happened.

"It doesn't matter," Aerith said, saving them from having to answer. "This is great. Everyone's together again!"

"Speaking of everyone…" Aila suddenly found herself being pulled away from the computer by a very excited Yuffie. "There's one Committee member you haven't met yet!"

"Hey, wait--" Aila protested as Yuffie brought her front and center.

"Sora, Donald, Goofy, this is Aila, the newest and youngest member of the Restoration Committee!" Yuffie said happily. "These are the three we told you about," she added, grinning at Aila.

"I-I kind of figured," Aila replied nervously.

"Nice to meet ya, Aila," Goofy said with a wave. Donald and Sora smiled at her, and Aila's stomach flipped. This was so unreal.

"Um, nice to meet you too." Aila smiled, trying to hide her nervousness. "I've heard so much about you guys."

"Aila's from another world, just like you all," Cid said leaning back in his chair.

"Really?" Sora asked, and Aila nodded.

"How'd you end up here?" Donald asked.

"Um… good question," Aila said, looking at the others for help. They just shrugged.

"I found her!" Yuffie exclaimed, giving Aila a tight hug. "Isn't that right, Aila?"

"Uh… uh-huh," Aila said, subtly trying to push Yuffie away. Aerith giggled. Sora, Donald, and Goofy all exchanged glances, obviously amused by Yuffie's behavior, and Aila wondered if she'd always been this insane.

"Oh!" Sora exclaimed, as if remembering something he'd been meaning to say earlier. "So, um… we're trying to find Riku and the King. Have you seen 'em?" he asked hopefully. Leon, Aerith, and Cid shook their heads, much to Sora's disappointment. "Right."

"Sorry," Aerith said as Aila finally escaped from Yuffie. "But let us know if there's anything we can do to help. Okay?"

"Okay. Thanks," Sora said gratefully. Suddenly, Cid was up in Sora's face, causing the teen to take a few steps backwards.

"Don't go thankin' us just yet," he said with a smirk.

"Hollow Bastion's got a problem," Leon said seriously. "A big problem."

"You mean, like Nobodies? And Heartless?" Sora asked.

"That's right!" Yuffie said in her usual happy tone, despite the serious issue they were discussing.

"Sounds like you could use our help," Sora said easily.

"Then let's cut to the chase," said Leon, getting right down to business. "Sora, Donald, Goofy. We were hoping the three of you might give us a hand around here."

Sora patted his chest proudly. "Like we're gonna say no?" Aila smiled.

Leon stared at him for a moment. "…I forgot who I'm dealing with," he said with a slight smirk.

"Hey, what do you mean by that?" Donald asked suspiciously.

"Just think of it as a sort of 'Leon compliment'," Aerith said, exchanging a knowing glance with Aila. It was true; that was about the best compliment you could get from Leon.

Leon walked to the entrance and opened the door. "Follow me to the Bailey—there's something you need to see. You too, Aila."

Aila blinked. "Um, sure." She walked to the door as well.

"Hey, don't forget, kid, we're supposed to go over the new Gummi specs today!" Cid yelled after her. Aila waved, signaling she'd heard him, and walked out the door.

"So, um, why did I need to come?" she asked, catching up to Leon.

"You were the last on patrol. I want you to tell me how the percentage of Heartless and Nobodies at the Bailey now compares to the amount that was there were earlier, so we can see how quickly they're reappearing."

"Okay," Aila said with a nod. They made their way up the stairs, Leon slicing through a few Dusks on the way.

"There's a lot less now," Aila said as they reached an open area overlooking the castle in the distance. "Of course, it's only been a few minutes since I finished clearing this place."

"And we've already seen a few Dusks," Leon said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I give it half an hour tops until this place is completely infested again."

Aila sighed and folded her arms on the ledge, looking down at the castle. She wasn't allowed to go down there by herself, and she could see why; Shadows and Dusks were everywhere, way too many for her to fight off on her own.

"Looks pretty hopeless, doesn't it," Leon said, looking over the ledge as well. Aila said nothing for a few moments, choosing her words carefully.

"Not hopeless," she said softly, watching a large group of Dusks slink towards the castle. "Just… difficult." She glanced at Leon, who seemed to be looking at the same Nobodies. "We can handle difficult. Especially now that Sora and them are gonna help out."

Leon smirked slightly. "That's true. He's one amazing kid, that Sora."

Aila smiled. "From what you guys have told me, I'm sure this will be no problem for him."

"Hm…" Leon hummed, still staring out at the castle, and Aila could tell he agreed.

They stood in silence for a few minutes, neither of them feeling the need to say anything. That was one of the things Aila liked about Leon. Silences were never uncomfortable with him. But still, something had been bugging her…

"Leon?" Aila asked after a while, resting her chin in her hands as she continued to lean on the ledge. He looked at her, a sign for her to continue. "Do you think… if my world really is… gone… would there be any way to get it back?"

Leon thought for a moment. "…I'm not sure."

"You said that Sora restored the worlds once. So that means… that means that maybe he could do it again, right?" Aila asked hopefully.

Leon looked at her, and Aila saw some kind of emotion flash through his eyes for just a second, too fast for her to identify it. "It's possible…" he said slowly. Aila nodded, satisfied with that answer, even though she got the feeling that Leon wasn't telling her the whole truth.

It was funny; she had been so bored with her life back home. She had wished so badly to be a part of something exciting, some kind of adventure. Now she had exactly what she wanted, and all she could think about was home.

…Stupid irony.

"I guess this is what I get for wishing for an adventure, huh?" she said out loud with a short laugh. She could still feel Leon's eyes on her as she looked back out to the castle, reminiscing about home.

A few minutes later, Leon was beginning to get restless.

"What is taking those three so long?" he grumbled, crossing his arms.

"Uh… I think I heard Merlin pop in right after we left," Aila lied. She hadn't heard him, but she knew that was what had happened. "I'm sure they'll be here soon." As soon as the words were out of her mouth, the two heard the sound of footsteps approaching. Aila turned to see the trio running towards them and smiled. "See?"

Sora and the gang came to a stop, and Leon gestured down below.

"Look at that."

Sora gasped as he looked over the edge, spotting the many Heartless and Nobodies below.

"We want to restore Hollow Bastion to what it used to be," Leon began. "Who knows, maybe even something better. There's still a lot to do, but I'm sure we can handle everything—Except… for that…" Leon pointed to the castle in the distance, and then to two Dusks making their way towards the castle. "…And that," he finished. Aila frowned, wondering why the Dusks were all heading towards the castle. She tried to remember the events of the game, but she couldn't think of any reason for them to go there.

"We'll handle 'em!" Sora said confidently.

"Well, that's good to hear," Leon said, turning to face him. He put a hand on Aila's shoulder, bringing her out of her train of thought. She quickly stepped away from the ledge, ready to pay attention. "So Sora—do you know what's going on, then?"

"There's this guy, Pete, who's been going around plotting with the Heartless," Sora began quickly. "But he's not smart enough to tie his own shoes. The ones we need to worry about are the Nobodies."

"And those Organization XIII guys in charge, too!" Goofy added.

"_You called_?"

Aila jumped and the other four looked around quickly for the source of the voice. Aila couldn't believe she'd been so surprised; she had known this was coming, after all.

Sora ran to the other side of the Bailey, Donald and Goofy following close behind him. Leon and Aila exchanged glances quickly before following as well.

"_You're doing well_," the mysterious voice continued.

"Who's that!?" Sora shouted, calling the Keyblade. Aila couldn't help but let out at soft "whoa" as the Kingdom Key appeared in all its shining glory.

"_This calls for a celebration…_"

Aila shivered. The voice was _much_ creepier in person. Leon summoned his Gunblade, and, following his lead, Aila summoned her staff. She glared at it quickly, annoyed by the fact that it was so plain compared to everyone else's weapons, before taking a fighting stance.

Two Dusks appeared on the stairs, and Donald and Goofy immediately charged. Before Sora could follow, however, two more Dusks appeared between where he stood and where Aila and Leon were. Aila yelped as they flew over her and into the Bailey, Sora charging after them. Recovering quickly, Aila followed, ignoring Leon as he reached out, almost like he was attempting to stop the teens. He must have thought better of it, however, for a moment later he was beside them, all traces of hesitation long gone.

The gates to the inside began to close, as they were programmed to do in the case of an attack.

"Keep them away from the gates," Leon ordered, lunging and knocking a Dusk away as it attempted to break the gates down. Sora and Aila nodded.

For a few seconds, Aila was completely distracted watching Sora fight. Seeing the Keyblade in action was amazing! Sora's skills were incredible, and he knocked the Nobodies away easily.

"Ah!" Aila gasped, turning just in time to block an incoming attack from a Dusk that had snuck up on her.

"Focus, Aila!" Leon ordered.

"Right, sorry!" Aila apologized. She dodged another attack and countered quickly, sending the pesky Nobody flying into a nearby wall. Before it could recover, she leapt into the air and brought her staff down on the creature in a vertical slice, finishing it off. She spun around quickly and her staff collided with another Nobody, a Creeper. It flew into the air, and Aila continued to spin around one more time, hitting it with even more momentum as it fell back down. It faded before it hit the floor.

Glancing to her right, Aila saw Leon finishing off three Dusks at once. She was about to help him when she noticed a Samurai lurking behind him. She gasped, noticing it was about to strike, and charged, knocking the Nobody away at the last second. Unfortunately, Samurai's were still a challenge for Aila, and now that she'd gotten its attention all its focus was on her. It straightened up and stared at her for a moment, preparing to attack. "Uh oh."

The Samurai lashed out with its twin swords, and Aila had to use every bit of concentration to parry its attacks. She was on the defensive, backing up quickly as the Nobody continued its attack. She couldn't keep this up for long, and Sora and Leon were both busy with enemies of their own. Beginning to feel desperate, Aila tried to think of something in her training that would stop the creature's attack.

Stop! That was it, the spell Stop! Aila's relief was short lived, however, as she realized that she didn't know that spell. Crap. Magic wasn't exactly her forte, and even though Merlin had tried to teach her a few spells, she hadn't really gotten the hang of any of them yet, especially not the more complicated ones like Stop. She had almost been able to do Reflect once… how did that one work again?

"Er… um…" Aila tried to concentrate on imagining a barrier, like Merlin had told her to, but it was rather difficult when she also had to focus on not getting sliced up by the still attacking Samurai. "D-DEFEND!" Aila stuttered, focusing all her energy into imagining a barrier in front of her. She closed her eyes, figuring that if it didn't work she'd rather not see her death. She heard a loud _CLANG _and opened her eyes in time to see the Nobody go flying backwards, her Reflect spell already fading away.

She blinked. "It worked?" she asked, completely dumbfounded. A triumphant smile slowly spread across her face. "Yeah! It worked! Take that, you ugly Nobody!" Unfortunately, the Samurai was down but not out. It straightened back up, and Aila's face fell. "Aw, man," she complained as it prepared itself to attack again.

"Hah!" Sora cried, coming out of nowhere and striking the Samurai with the Keyblade. This time, the Nobody went down for good, fading away into nothing before Aila could even blink.

"Um… thanks," Aila said awkwardly as Sora turned towards her.

"No problem," he replied, giving a thumbs up.

"_The Keyblade…_" the mysterious voice began again. Sora began to run outside, Aila and Leon following close behind. "_A truly marvelous weapon_," the voice continued. "_Were it only in more… capable hands…_"

The sounds of laughter echoed around them, and Aila stumbled, clamping a hand over her mouth. Demyx's laugh… it was so obvious! It was so nerdy, completely failing at sounding even a little bit evil. However, this was not exactly a laughing situation, so she desperately tried to stifle her urge to erupt into giggles.

"Show yourselves!" Sora commanded, not a trace of amusement on his face. Aila quickly composed herself and looked up at the ledge above them. She knew what was next.

A single cloaked figure materialized on the ledge, staring down at them for a moment. He raised his arms, and five more figures appeared. Sora gasped as he suddenly realized exactly who he was looking at.

The Organization.

KHKHKHKHKHKHKH

Please review and tell me what you think! Thanks for reading!

~Fade


	5. First Impressions

Hello again! Okay, so, this chapter was actually going to be like ten pages longer, but I'm still having problems with those pages, and I'd said that I wanted to post about every two weeks, so I just decided to split it. It's still twelve pages long though, which is pretty good, right? So anyways, enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except for Aila and her family.

"_It's hard to fight an enemy who has outposts in your head." –Sally Kempton_

Chapter 5: First Impressions

"Organization XIII!" Goofy exclaimed. Sora turned to look at Donald an Goofy, the two of them nodding and getting into a fighting stance.

"Good," Sora said, turning back to glare at the Nobodies. "Now we can settle this!"

Leon glanced quickly at Aila, who just tightened her grip on her staff. He was not going to make her miss this. And besides, she knew they weren't going to have to fight just yet.

"What a shame…" the lead Organization member stated in mock disappointment. "And here I thought we could be friends."

The Organization members laughed sinisterly once again and vanished as quickly as they'd appeared. Aila straightened up and looked around cautiously. She got the feeling the Nobodies were all still watching them…

"Stop!" Donald cried, obviously peeved at the idea of letting the enemy getting away. He began running for the stairs, but was cut off when one of the Organization members reappeared right in front of him. Donald looked up at the ledge where the cloaked figures had just stood and then back to the member in front of him, his beak hanging open in surprise. "What's the big idea?" he asked, annoyed and confused.

"Oopsy-daisy!" the cloaked man said smugly. Aila took a tiny step back instinctively. The man, who she knew was Xigbar, was rather intimidating in person, despite the fact that he sounded like a surfer dude.

"Move!" Sora demanded.

"Now, do you think that's polite, shutting me down like that?" Xigbar asked innocently, pretending to be offended.

"I said get outta the way!" Sora exclaimed angrily, obviously not in the mood to mess around.

"As if!" Xigbar replied, crossing his arms. "You can talk all you want, but that won't change a thing."

Donald leapt back so that he, Goofy, and Sora were all next to each other. "Then we're gonna MAKE you move!" he yelled, the trio getting into their fighting stances once again.

"See, that would work—if I were just any old dude. 'Cept I'm not. I'm with the Organization. Nothing 'any old' about me."

"Ha! Tough talk for someone who stood on the sidelines while his Nobody flunkies did the fighting!" Sora pointed out confidently.

"Oh dear," Xigbar said, fake concern lacing his voice. "I think you got the wrong impression," he continued, wagging his finger.

"You gonna cry?" Sora taunted, and Aila smirked.

"As if!" Xigbar said once again. Aila rolled her eyes. That was about the most annoying catch phrase ever. "Why don't I remind you how tough the crowd you're dealing with really is?" he continued.

This caught Sora off guard. "Remind me?" he asked, straightening up. He quickly snapped out of it and crouched back into a fighting pose, glaring angrily at Xigbar.

Unfortunately, his glare didn't exactly have the intimidating effect he'd hoped for. Xigbar started laughing, and Aila shivered; _he_ definitely had the whole evil laugh thing down. "That's RIGHT, he used to give me that same exact look," he said, extremely amused.

Sora raised an eyebrow. "I guess you think you can psych me out by saying really random stuff!"

"Gee… I just don't know," Xigbar said with a shrug. He spread his arms and looked at each of them, as if challenging someone to attack him. When his eyes rested on Aila, however, he paused. Aila took a step back warily. Did he know she wasn't supposed to be there? "Huh. Now that's interesting…" he said taking a step towards her, intrigued.

In a flash, Leon was in front of her, his Gunblade pointed directly at the Nobody, a warning for him not to come any closer. Xigbar stopped, thought for another moment, and stepped back to his original spot, turning back to face Sora.

"Be a good boy now!" he said with a wave of his hand before fading away into darkness. Aila sighed in relief.

"Wait!" Donald cried, leaping at the fading Nobody. Unfortunately, Xigbar was already gone, and Donald hit the floor hard. "Nuts!" he said angrily. "He got away!"

"That was weird," Sora said thoughtfully. "WHO gave him the same look?"

Goofy turned to look at Sora. "Y'know, I think he was just tryin' to confuse ya."

Sora smiled at him. "Yeah, you're right. Only one me!" he said confidently. Aila sweatdropped.

"Are you alright?" Leon asked, turning to look at Aila seriously. Aila sighed.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," she said, somewhat annoyed. Sometimes she felt like the Committee members were too protective of her. It wasn't like Xigbar even got anywhere near her, after all. After a moment of irritation, she paused. "What was so interesting…?" she asked aloud, mostly to herself, looking back to where the Nobody had been standing moments before.

"Like Goofy said, he was just trying to psych us all out," Sora assured. Aila nodded, though she wasn't so convinced. Sora then took out his membership card and held it up. "The Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee Honorary Member—" he read. Suddenly, the card began to glow, and he let go of it in surprise. Everyone gasped as the card continued to hover in the air, glowing brighter and brighter. "Huh?" Sora gasped as his Keyblade began to glow as well.

"What's this?" Leon asked.

"Gawrsh, ya think…?" Goofy asked.

The card rose higher into the air, and a strange wind and light surrounded Sora as he held the Keyblade in front of him, the light so bright that the others had to cover their eyes. However, Aila desperately wanted to see him unlock the gate, and so she refused to look away. Unfortunately, all that did was cause her vision to go spotty; she couldn't see anything through the light surrounding Sora.

After a few seconds, it was over. Everyone looked up to see Sora holding the Kingdom Key pointed towards the sky. Aila shook her head, attempting to clear her vision and making a note to herself not to try that again.

"Ohh… now I get it," Sora said, looking at the Keyblade with sudden understanding. He then looked up at the sky. "That must've been the gate Yen Sid talked about."

"Oh boy!" Donald exclaimed happily.

Aila frowned and looked at the sky as well, disappointed. She'd wanted to spend more time with the trio. She'd hardly said two words to them, and now they already had to go.

"Sorry to run, Leon," Sora said, turning to address the brunette, "but, other worlds are calling." Aila stared at him for a moment, all of her disappointment suddenly gone. She could tell that Sora took his job very seriously; it was selfish of her to want him to stay when he had worlds to save.

Leon nodded, understanding as well. "Organization XIII…" he began, crossing his arms seriously. "They look tough." His expression then softened. "Be careful out there."

The trio nodded and then turned to Aila. "It was nice to meet you," Sora said with a smile. Aila blinked.

"Uh… y-yeah, you too," she replied with a nervous smile of her own.

"See you soon," Sora said with another nod. Leon and Aila nodded as well, and the trio walked off, waving as they went.

Aila smiled an waved back; Leon just smirked. "Well, that was interesting," He looked back up at the ledge where they Organization members had stood. "I'm beginning to wonder if those three will make it back in one piece," he joked as he began to walk back through the Bailey.

"Leon!" Aila gasped. "Don't say that!" Leon just glanced at her, still smirking. Aila had never seen him in such a good mood…

She might as well take advantage of it, right?

"That was a lot of Nobodies we had to fight just now, huh?" she began innocently, matching his pace as they neared the stairs leading back to Merlin's.

"I guess…" Leon said, eyeing Aila suspiciously. Aila avoided eye contact and clasped her hands behind her back, using all of her acting skills to act as innocent as possible.

"Yeah, there were so many. And I even fought off a Samurai all by myself! Well, sort of…" She left out the part where Sora saved her. "So, I was thinking, since I've technically cleared out the Bailey twice today, then that would count as my second shift, right?"

Leon rolled his eyes. "Nice try kid," he replied, making his way down the stairs.

"Aw, come on!" Aila pouted. Even in a good mood Leon was just as strict as ever. Meanie.

They continued on into Merlin's house, completely oblivious of the figure hiding in the shadows on one of the rooftops. He watched silently as Aila continued to argue her case, Leon intent on ignoring her as they walked through the door and out of sight.

"Very interesting indeed…"

KHKHKHKHKH

A few days had passed since the trio had come to visit, and they had yet to return, much to the dismay of the Restoration Committee. None of them dared to complain, of course; they knew there's wasn't the only world in need, and Sora and the others were probably off helping people with much bigger problems. But still, things were beginning to get a little bit out of hand.

"Yah!" Aila cried, slicing through yet another Creeper nobody. The Heartless and Nobodies had gotten stronger, and, much to Aila's dismay, more and more Samurais had been appearing every day.

"Nice one, Aila!" Yuffie shouted, sitting on a ledge a safe distance away from the Heartless. The girls were currently on a double patrol at the base of the stairs in the Bailey.

At least, it was supposed to be a double patrol.

"You know, I could use some help here!" Aila shouted up at her, leaping away as a dreaded Samurai lunged at her.

Yuffie put her finger to her chin. "Mm… Nope, I'm good here, thanks though," she said, leaning back and resting on her hands, enjoying the show.

"Yuffie, I swear, once I get rid of these guys, I'm coming after you next!" Aila yelled angrily as she narrowly avoided being sliced in half by one of the Samurai's swords while simultaneously knocking away a Dusk.

"Come on, Aila, how do you expect to learn if I'm always helping you?" Yuffie asked, swinging her legs back and fourth.

"You never help me," Aila pointed out, using a Reflect spell to finish off the Samurai and send the last two Dusks flying. She'd gotten pretty good at that spell, much to Merlin's delight. Unfortunately, it was the only spell she could do without blowing something up.

"And look how much you've learned!" Yuffie replied with a laugh.

Aila growled and threw her staff at the dazed Dusks, both of them fading into nothing. Aila picked up her staff and scanned the area carefully, letting out a sigh of relief when she was sure there were no Nobodies left.

Yuffie jumped down from her perch and looked around with a nod. "Nice work. Of course, I've cleared this place much faster before."

"Well then how about next time you fight, and I'll watch," Aila suggested as she turned and stomped off towards the stairs. As much fun as Yuffie was to hang out with, she could be such a pain sometimes, especially when they were supposed to be working.

"And just where do you think you're going?" Yuffie asked, her hands on her hips.

Aila turned and raised an eyebrow. "I told you, I have to go buy more potions."

"You used them all up already?" Yuffie asked skeptically.

"Well maybe I wouldn't have if you'd helped me out a little!" Aila said, completely exasperated.

Yuffie rolled her eyes. "Toughen up, jeez," she said, earning her a death glare from Aila. "Anyways, you're supposed to go patrol the Zero District now, remember?"

"I know, I know. I'll go right after this," Aila said, turning back to the stairs.

"Don't take all day!" Yuffie called after her. Aila ignored her and continued up the stairs and through the Bailey.

She stuffed her hands in her pockets as she exited the covered portion of the Bailey, looking up at the sky as she walked. For a few moments, she searched for any sign of movement in the sky. She'd been doing this for the past few days, hoping to see a Gummi ship entering the atmosphere, signaling the return of Sora, Donald, and Goofy. But, like always, she saw nothing but clouds.

At first, Aila had been expecting to see the trio again the very same day they left. In the game, it had seemed like everything had taken place in one very long, very eventful day, seeing as the trio never slept. But, of course, everything was in real time now, and Aila had no idea when she'd see them again. She wondered how long they would spend on each world. A day? A week? And then there was the travel time, too; it would probably take much longer than a couple seconds to get each world. Maybe they hadn't even reached the first world yet…

"Mornin' Aila!" Louie greeted as she walked up to his shop.

"Hey Louie, what's up?" Aila asked with a grin.

"Same old, same old," the young duck replied, smiling back innocently. Aila narrowed her eyes suspiciously. He was up to something.

"So," she began slowly, trying to act nonchalant. "I need some more potions. Got any in stock?"

"Already?" Louie asked with a laugh. "You just bought potions yesterday!"

"Yes, well, Yuffie refuses to do any fighting, so I've needed a lot of them," she replied with a scowl.

"Hm, that's too bad, Aila," Louie said in that same innocent tone. "Let me see if I got any…"

Suddenly, in the very edge of her peripheral vision, Aila saw movement above her. In a flash she jumped out of the way, just as Huey and Dewey crashed down on the spot she'd just been in.

"I knew you were up to something!" she exclaimed to Louie, who just smiled nervously at her.

"What happened?" Dewey asked, dazed from the fall.

"Aw man, we almost had you!" Huey exclaimed with a pout.

Aila laughed. "I told you you couldn't scare me, didn't I?"

"We'll get you eventually!" Huey declared as he stood up.

"No way," Aila said, shaking her head.

"We got you one time," Dewey pointed out as he stood as well. It was true; when Aila had first met the brothers, they'd decided to play a prank on her, so they hid in Scrooge's freezer and popped out at her right when Scrooge was showing her his prototypes. Needless to say, it had nearly scared Aila to death. In fact, it had worked so well that the brothers had decided to make a game out of trying to surprise her again.

Unfortunately for them, now Aila was on constant alert whenever they were around, and she'd been able to avoid all of their surprise attacks.

"That was one time," Aila said, waving her hand as if it were nothing. "And besides, I wasn't _that_ scared," she lied.

"Yes you were!" the three protested at the same time. Aila just smiled and stuck her tongue out at them.

The clock chimed in the distance. Eleven o'clock. "Ah, jeez. I need to get going."

"Already?" Louie asked sadly.

"Yeah, I've gotta get to the Zero District." The truth was, Aila would have much rather stayed and spent time with the brothers. She was already exhausted, and it felt like she hadn't gotten to hang out with them in a long time; ever since the Heartless and Nobodies' numbers had begun growing, she'd had to spend more and more time helping out the Committee.

"You should tell Leon to give you a break," Huey said, crossing his arms.

Aila shook her head sadly. "No, no, I can't do that. The Committee needs all the help they can get right now."

"Hey, I have an idea!" Dewey exclaimed excitedly. "When Uncle Donald gets back, we can tell him to tell Leon to give you a break!"

"No, guys, didn't you hear what I just—"

"That's a great idea!" Louie agreed, completely ignoring Aila's protests.

"But I just said that Leon—"

"Alright, then it's settled. When Uncle Donald gets back, we'll get him to talk to Leon for you. Then you can play with us!" Huey concluded.

"Right!" Dewey and Louie agreed.

"_Guys_!" Aila exclaimed, finally getting their attention. "You don't have to bother your Uncle with that! He's got other things to worry about!"

"Oh, you worry too much, Aila," Huey said, shaking his head. "Uncle Donald will do it if we ask _really nicely_." To demonstrate, Huey, Dewey, and Louie all looked at her with puppy dog eyes. Aila was about to protest again, but it was too hard to argue with them looking at her like that. Donald would cave to that for sure.

"By the way, Aila, I just got a new order of hi-potions in," Louie said, reminding her of why she was there in the first place.

"Hi-potions?" Aila asked. She'd never used anything but a regular potion, but she knew that hi-potions were much better… She checked her munny pouch. "How much?"

"100 each," Louie replied. Aila frowned. "All right, all right," Louie said at the look on her face. "I guess I could let them go for 60 each."

"Okay," Aila said with a grin. "I'll take… four potions and three hi-potions, then."

"Here you go!" Louie said, handing her the items. Aila gave him the munny, deciding that she should try to get some more soon seeing as she was starting to run low on funds. Maybe she could get Yuffie to pay her back for the potions…

"Thanks," she said with a grin. "I'll see you guys later, okay?"

"Okay! Bye!" the brothers exclaimed as she walked away.

The Zero District was the oldest section of the town, and it also happened to have the lowest altitude. Apparently, the Zero District was where the very first building in Hollow Bastion was built, but it had been torn down and replaced during one of the many renovations and expansions the town had gone through over the years. However, it still held a lot of its historic charm; it reminded Aila of a slightly more modern version of a colonial town.

Unfortunately, the Zero District had also become rather dangerous, seeing as it was on the outskirts of the residential areas and was therefore closest to the Heartless and Nobodies. Of course, compared to places like the Bailey or the Restoration Site, the Zero District (or Ground Zero as Cid called it) was rather peaceful.

So, after patrolling for a good twenty minutes and only seeing two Shadows and one Dusk, Aila took the opportunity to do a little exploring.

She was really supposed to stick to the main streets, but the main streets were empty, and boring, so she wandered off into an alleyway. As it turned out, she'd actually stumbled into a maze of alleyways, each connecting with at least two more, leading her farther and farther away from the main streets.

After about the 16th alley, Aila decided to take a break. "Where the heck does this go?" she asked aloud, leaning against the wall. "Maybe this is why I was supposed to stay on the main streets…"

"Need some help?"

Aila jumped and looked up to find that she wasn't the only one in the alley. There was someone else leaning against the opposite wall, wearing a black cloak with a hood… "You… you're from Organization XIII!" she gasped.

"Hm, what gave it away?" the man asked sarcastically. Aila pressed herself against the wall, trying to keep as much distance between them as possible. She had not been expecting this; there was no way she could win against an Organization member! Her heart was pounding extremely loudly in her chest. She wondered if he could hear it…

"Come on, there's no need to be scared. We're friends," the Nobody continued, pushing himself off of the wall and taking a step towards Aila.

"We're _not_ friends," Aila said, summoning her staff and clutching it tightly in front of her. "You're an enemy."

"Now see, that just hurts my feelings." The man lifted his hands to his hood and pulled it back. Aila's eyes widened when she saw his face, his red hair even brighter and more flame-like in person. "I offer you help and you just cut me down?"

"W-what?" Aila asked, trying to keep her cool.

"I said, I was offering to help you," Axel said very slowly, as if talking to a four year old. When Aila continued to look confused, he sighed. "You need help getting back to the main streets."

"No I don't," Aila said with a defiant scowl.

"Oh really?" Axel said, raising an eyebrow. "Well, alright then." He bowed and gestured down the alleyway. "Lead the way then."

Aila hesitated, Leon and Yuffie's warnings about never ever turning her back on an enemy echoing in her mind. But… Axel ended up being kind of a good guy in the end, right? Of course, this was still the beginning of the game… before he'd even kidnapped Kairi…

Axel sighed again. "I'm not going to attack you from behind, if that's what you're worried about," he said, as if reading her mind. "Even I'm not _that _despicable." After a few more moments of hesitation, Aila slowly turned away from him, gripping her staff as tight as she could, and began to walk down the alley.

Unfortunately, she was completely turned around. '_Left, right, right, left… or wait, was that left, right, right, straight…_' Aila had no idea which way to go, and it didn't help that Axel was right behind her, chuckling as he followed her through the maze.

When the alley branched off again, Aila stopped, looking left, and then right, and then straight, completely lost. She was about to resort to 'Eeny Meeny Miny Moe' when Axel spoke up again.

"So, still think you don't need my help?"

Aila scowled. She had no choice; without his help, she'd probably never find her way out. He'd found one of her greatest weaknesses: Directions.

Reluctantly, she turned to face him. "Why would you help me?" she asked carefully.

"What, I can't do something nice for someone in need?" he asked with a smirk.

Just then, a portal of darkness appeared, and another cloaked man stepped into the alleyway.

"Alright, I couldn't find her anywhere," the second man said, crossing his arms. "Seriously! I looked everywhere! Maybe she--" It was at that moment he noticed Aila, and he faltered. "Oh… uh… never mind," he stammered. Aila sweatdropped.

"Moron," Axel muttered, putting a hand to his face. The second man removed his hood as well, causing Aila's heart to sputter loudly once again. His mullet was flawless, and Aila wondered how much hair gel he used to keep it from getting messed up under the hood.

"Uh, Axel, I thought we weren't supposed to talk to her?" Demyx asked uncertainly, looking back and forth between Axel and Aila.

"She was lost," Axel said.

"I wasn't lost!" Aila lied defensively, very aware of the fact that she was now outnumbered. Of course, it was by her two favorite Organization members, so she was rather torn between being terrified and jumping up and down excitedly.

"Really?" Demyx asked, what looked like genuine concern in his eyes. "Do you need help getting out of here?"

Aila's scowl softened into a look of pure confusion. "Why… why are you both being so nice?"

"Are we?" Axel asked innocently.

Aila frowned. "We're enemies…"

"There you go with that again," Axel said with a wave of his hand.

"What makes us enemies?" Demyx asked with a smile, and Aila was instantly doubting her previous statement. He didn't _look_ evil…

"You're… you're part of Organization XIII," Aila explained, trying to hide her doubt.

"So?" Demyx asked, raising an eyebrow.

"So… so you guys are bad guys!" Aila said, starting to become flustered. "Good guys and bad guys are enemies!"

"You're a good guy, then?" Axel asked, crossing his arms.

"Of course I am," Aila said with a scowl.

"Why are we bad? What did we do?" Demyx asked.

Aila opened her mouth to respond, but she couldn't. What had they done? It's not like they were going around killing people… They just wanted Sora to collect hearts for them, didn't they? But as far as they knew, she didn't know that. They were also trying to turn people into Heartless, weren't they? No, but she wasn't supposed to know that either…

"Can't think of anything, can you?" Axel said with a smirk. "Someone told you we were bad, right? You have no real proof of anything. If you hadn't been told that we're supposedly on the 'wrong side,' then you'd have no opinion of us right now. You wouldn't know if we were 'good' or 'bad'."

Aila scowled but said nothing. She'd played the game. She _knew_ that the Organization was bad. But Axel was right; if she had never played it, then all she would know was what Sora had told her, which wasn't really anything. She hadn't actually seen them do anything bad.

"So then, how about you decide for yourself whether we're good guys or bad guys, hm?" Axel stared at Aila, gauging her reaction. Aila blinked. Had Axel really just convinced her that the members of Organization XIII _weren't _bad guys?

"Let's start over then," Demyx said. Aila yelped as he was suddenly right in front of her. He was fast! "Hello there! I'm Demyx! What's you're name?" He held out his hand, and Aila just stared at it blankly, still trying to comprehend what was happening.

"You're supposed to shake it," Axel said. Aila looked up, confused. Axel rolled his eyes. "His hand?"

Aila looked back down to Demyx's outstretched hand. Very slowly, she reached her own hand towards his. She almost pulled away when they touched, shocked by how cold his hand was, a confirmation of the fact that he really didn't have a heart. "Aila." She said quietly. "My name's Aila."

"Nice to meet you!" Demyx said with a dazzling smile, pulling his hand away. "The grumpy one over there is Axel," he said, jerking his thumb over his shoulder. Axel glared at him. "So, what do you say we get out of here?" He began marching down the alley.

"You're going the wrong way, genius," Axel said with another roll of his eyes. Demyx faltered.

"Er, right… I knew that," he said, quickly turning around and marching the other way.

Axel shook his head and began walking away as well. After a few steps, he turned back to look at Aila. "You coming or what?"

Aila hesitated for a moment before nodding, walking quickly to catch up to the two Nobodies and hoping that she wasn't making a big mistake.

KHKHKHKHKH

Uh oh, Axel's pretty tricky. Are they actually taking Aila back to the main streets, or are they leading her into a trap? After all, it's in a Nobody's nature to try and fool their enemies…

Since I ended up cutting this chapter, I have like half of the next chapter done already, hooray! So hopefully it won't be too long before you see it.

Thanks for reading, please review!!

~Fade


	6. Friend or Foe

Ahhh I'm sorry! I know, I know, it's been over two weeks. BUT that is totally not my fault. would not let me log in!! I've been trying to post this for days!! Sigh, but anyways, I hope it was worth the wait. This chapter is a bit shorter than the others, but I like it anyways. Aila gets to spend some quality time with Axel and Dem-Dem, hooray for her! She doesn't seem too excited about it though…

Anyways, enough of my ramblings. On with the story!!

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. I only own Aila and her family.

"_The best way to destroy and enemy is to make him a friend." –Abraham Lincoln_

**Chapter 6: Friend or Foe**

"So, Aila, how'd you get lost back here anyways?" Demyx asked as they walked.

"Oh, um, I got bored… Were you guys following me or something?" she asked, looking at them skeptically.

"Of course not," Axel said, sniffing disdainfully.

"But… you, you were looking for me, weren't you?" Aila asked addressing Demyx, who sweatdropped.

"Uh… maybe…"

Aila glared at Axel.

"'Looking for' is different than 'following'," he said with a shrug. Aila scowled.

"Why were you looking for me?" she asked, still on her guard.

"That's a good question," Demyx said casually. Aila raised an eyebrow.

"Our orders were just to observe you for a while," Axel explained. "We weren't told why. Personally I can't see any reason for it, you seem awfully boring to me."

"Hey!" Aila said, offended. Demyx laughed, and Axel smirked, causing Aila to cross her arms with a huff. These two were much more annoying in person.

"So… you've met Sora," Axel said suddenly.

"Um… yeah, for a few minutes," Aila said cautiously. If they thought they were going to get information about Sora from her, they were sadly mistaken.

However, Demyx gave Axel what looked like a warning look, and Axel said nothing more about the Keyblader, much to Aila's relief and surprise.

Suddenly, Axel stopped, glaring at something in front of them. Aila looked up to see a Soldier heartless in their path. She looked at Axel, completely confused; why would he stop for one measly Heartless?

"Something isn't right," he said, as if reading her thoughts once again. Aila was beginning to wonder if he actually _could_ hear her thoughts.

Aila was about to ask what he was talking about, when suddenly more Soldiers appeared, surrounding the three of them. Aila's eyes widened. She had never seen more than maybe ten Heartless at a time in the Zero District, and yet there must have been at least twenty or thirty surrounding them.

"What?" Aila asked, backing away from the Heartless closest to her. "What did you do?!" she asked the Nobodies angrily.

"Hey, don't look at us!" Demyx said, backing up as well. The three of them were now back to back in the center of the Heartless' circle.

"We hate these black spots as much as you do," Axel spat through clenched teeth.

"Oh, so you're telling me that it's just a coincidence that a freaking flock of Heartless just happens to show up right after you two do?" Aila accused. She knew she shouldn't have trusted them.

"Coincidences happen," Axel said, summoning his Chakrams in a fiery display, making Aila jump. Demyx summoned his Sitar, and the two of them took on fighting poses.

"But—" Aila protested.

"You can continue accusing us _after_ we've gotten rid of these guys," Axel said sternly.

Aila paused before turning back to face the Soldiers. "Fine."

With that, the three of them charged.

For once, Aila was somewhat grateful that Yuffie hadn't been helping her earlier; it made it easier for her not to rely on her 'teammates', whom she was still convinced were behind this sudden attack. Maybe Yuffie did have some method to her madness after all… Of course, Aila would never tell her that.

Aila drove her staff through a nearby Soldier and smirked as she watched it vanish. She then spun around and delivered a horizontal strike to three Heartless at once. One of them went down, but unfortunately for her the other two countered with a kick, which she barely blocked in time. Suddenly she was on the defensive as the third Soldier rejoined its fellows, the three of them pushing against Aila's staff. She pushed back, determined not to lose the battle of strength. Fortunately, the little Heartless weren't all that strong, and as long as she didn't get distracted…

"Dance, Water, Dance!"

Aila heard Demyx's battle cry behind her and faltered. She had always mocked Demyx's most famous battle phrase when she'd battled him in the game, and now hearing it in person… it was just too hilarious! Aila only lost focus for a second as she thought about the game, but that was all her opponents needed to overpower her.

Aila gasped as she lost her balance and fell backwards. The three Heartless had not been expecting her opposing force to disappear and went flying forward, landing on the floor right next to Aila, who had had to roll out of the way to avoid them as they fell.

Aila cursed herself. How could she have gotten distracted so easily?! Really it was Demyx's fault, though; why couldn't he just fight quietly? It's not like Aila felt the need to yell random things when she was fighting!

Unfortunately, that tiny moment of distraction was about to cost her. The three Soldiers were already up and charging, and she hadn't even had time to stand up yet. And as if that weren't enough, she could see two more Heartless charging her from the side. She hurried to her feet, but by the time she'd steadied herself the closest Heartless was already lunging…

"BURN!"

Aila looked up just in time to see a stream of fire slam into the Heartless in front of her, knocking them all into the alley wall with painful _smack_. She turned to see Axel standing there, a very smug expression on his face.

"You… I…" Aila searched for words, completely shocked by the fact that Axel had just saved her.

"You're welcome," Axel said smugly before leaping back into the fray. Aila just blinked. What the heck was happening? Why were the bad guys being so freaking nice?!

Aila watched the two Nobodies for a few seconds fighting off Heartless side by side, water and fire flying in all different directions. They were both very good (though Axel was obviously a bit more skilled) and Aila couldn't help but be impressed. Suddenly, she saw four more Soldiers running up behind them, preparing to jump them from behind. Aila hesitated. If they truly were her enemies, then she really had no reason to intercept the Heartless, right? But Axel had just saved her… she owed him.

She sighed; she would be so dead if anyone ever found out about what she was about to do.

She made a dash for the Heartless, pulling her staff back as she ran. "Hah!" she cried, swinging her weapon forward and knocking the Soldier closest to her into the other three. Axel and Demyx looked back quickly at the commotion in time to see the Heartless going flying into the closest wall in one large heap, all of them fading away within seconds.

"Thanks kid!" Demyx exclaimed happily as he finished off the final Heartless, his Water Clones disintegrating as the battle ended.

"You're welcome," Aila said through clenched teeth. She couldn't believe she just _helped_ two Organization members. If Sora knew…

"Hm, not bad, kid," Axel commented, crossing his arms.

Aila scowled. "Stop calling me kid," she told the two, crossing her arms as well.

"What, you still mad cause you think _we_ summoned these guys?" Demyx asked with a laugh. Aila said nothing.

"Look, _kid_," Axel said, emphasizing the word 'kid'. Aila growled. "Like I said, we hate those things as much as you do. They're a nuisance. They don't think for themselves, they just act on instinct." He then leaned in so that his face was right in front of Aila's; she tried not to flinch. "Why would we side with something so pathetic?"

Aila scowled and looked him straight in the eye, hoping that he couldn't sense her fear. "If it helps you achieve your goal, then why wouldn't you?"

Axel raised an eyebrow and straightened up. Aila sighed inwardly in relief. "Now what do you know of our goal?"

Aila froze. Her breath caught in her throat, and her heart pounded wildly in her chest; she prayed they couldn't hear its sporadic beating. After a fraction of a second of panic, she decided to put her acting skills to use.

Unfortunately, she had forgotten one thing...

"What? What goal? Did I say goal? Nothing, I mean no, I mean…"

…She was a terrible liar.

Axel and Demyx exchanged confused glances.

"But, I mean, you obviously have one," Aila continued, her words coming out fast and squeaky. She winced, knowing that anyone would be able to see right through her idiotic ramblings. "You must be after something. Why else would there be an Organization? Heh heh…"

Axel stared hard at her for a moment, and she stared back, trying as hard as she could not to blink. After a few excruciating moments, Axel smirked. "I see," he said, turning away and walking down the alley as if a fleet of Heartless hadn't just attacked them. Aila slowly let out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding and followed, trying to calm her heart as she recovered from the incident.

"So you still think we summoned those guys? I swear we didn't, honest!" Demyx said, falling into step beside her. He looked at her with a look that somewhat reminded her of the one Huey, Dewey, and Louie had shown her earlier, and she couldn't help but feel like she'd been too hard on him.

"No, I believe you," she said with a sigh. "I guess you wouldn't have helped me fight them off if you were on their side, right?"

Demyx grinned, and Aila couldn't help but smile as well.

"Your heart's beating awfully fast, are you alright?" Demyx asked. Aila jumped. So they _could_ hear her heart beating?! Her heart, still recovering from the stress almost being caught in her lie a few moments ago, began to pick up speed again.

"Wha—? How do you—"

"Please, we could hear it a mile away with it pounding as loud as it is. It's extremely annoying," Axel said without looking back as he addressed her.

Aila took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. "Well sorry. It's not like I can turn it off," Aila said to Axel, trying to sound annoyed rather than frightened.

Axel stopped mid-step, so suddenly that Aila almost ran into him. He turned to face her and lean down so that they were at eye level (he was quite a bit taller than her, she realized).

"Oh really?" he said, a somewhat evil look in his eye. Aila's heart beat even faster. "We could help with that."

Aila gasped, her heart now racing so fast that she was worried it would burst right out of her. "You… you wouldn't," she stuttered, taking a step back.

Axel smirked. "Suit yourself," he said, straightening up and turning away. "At least try too calm down, you're giving me a headache."

For a few seconds, Aila was completely frozen with fear. Why, why didn't she just stay on the main streets like she was supposed to? Blinking back frustrated tears and wishing that she hadn't left her communicator back at Merlin's, Aila took a few deep breaths, trying to slow her racing heart. After a few seconds, she began to calm down, her heart slowing until finally it was just a dull thud in her chest.

She looked up to see Demyx watching her curiously.

"Better?" Axel asked, eyeing her carefully. She nodded, tears still pricking her eyes. Axel sighed. "Jeez, I didn't mean to scare you _that_ much. Toughen up," he said, echoing what Yuffie had told her earlier that day. Aila blinked. Being told to 'toughen up' by two people in one day was probably not a good thing.

"Why was it doing that?" Demyx asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Doing what?"

"You know, going all… fast and stuff," he said, furrowing his brow. Aila smiled slightly; he looked like a confused puppy.

"Oh, um, because I was scared," Aila said, blushing slightly.

"So it only beats fast when you're scared?" Demyx asked, as if trying to understand.

"No, lots of emotions can trigger it," Aila replied. When Demyx still looked confused, she elaborated. "Like excitement, anxiety, anticipation… basically most really strong emotions like that, you know?"

Demyx was still for a second, taking all the information in. Then suddenly he was right in front of her, the same curious look still on his face.

"H-hey, what are you—" Aila started, backing against the wall of the alley. Slowly, as if he was afraid he'd break her, Demyx reached his hand out and placed it gently on Aila's chest, right above her heart. Aila's face got hot, and her heart began pounding once again as Demyx leaned in closer, putting a bit more pressure on her heart so that he could feel its beating. Both of them were perfectly still, Aila frozen with shock, Demyx with concentration. After what seemed like an eternity to Aila, he removed his hand and took a step back.

"It was beating fast again," Demyx said, as if informing Aila of something she didn't know.

"I think you surprised her, Dem," Axel said, a very amused look on his face. Aila took deep breaths, trying to calm her poor heart once again.

"Oh," Demyx said, looking back at Aila. "Why is your face red?"

"It's not," Aila said, turning away and letting the pink fade from her cheeks. "S-so are you guys helping me get out of here or what?" she asked, changing the subject and marching off down the alleyway, trying to hide her embarrassment.

"Yeah, yeah," Axel chuckled as he and Demyx followed, Demyx still contemplating the workings of the heart.

KHKHKHKHKH

"Hey, we actually made it," Aila said as the main street came into view.

"Did you doubt my directions?" Axel asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No…" Aila said with an innocent smile, happy that her 'they're-leading-me-into-a-trap' theory had been wrong.

"That was fun!" Demyx said with a grin. "See? We're not so bad!"

Aila just grinned back nervously. Now that she was out in the open, she was worried that someone would see her with the Nobodies and get the wrong idea.

"Well, we'd better go," Axel said, forming a Portal of Darkness, making Aila jump.

"Aw, already?" Demyx whined. Axel nodded, and Demyx sighed in defeat. Axel was his superior after all.

"See you around, kid," Axel said with a nod. "Try not to get lost."

"Uh, r-right," Aila said, making a note not to wander off by herself again.

"Bye Aila!" Demyx said with a wave before disappearing into the portal, Axel following close behind. The portal closed, and Aila was left standing there, alone.

"Bye…" she said quietly. Her head was spinning from everything that had just happened. Maybe the Organization XIII guys weren't so bad after all…

What was she thinking?! She couldn't think like that! They were the bad guys! They were probably just trying to get her to trust them so that she wouldn't suspect them when they did something evil!

'But still,' Aila thought as she began walking slowly through the District, making one more round before heading back to town, 'they're really not all _that_ bad…'

"Ah! There you are!" Aila turned to see Merlin rushing towards her, seemingly out of breath.

"Merlin?" Aila asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Trying to locate you, that's what," Merlin said. Aila raised an eyebrow, confused.

"Why? Is something wrong?" she asked, immediately concerned.

Merlin chuckled. "Oh no, my dear. Everyone was just wondering where you'd run off to is all. You missed lunch you know."

Aila was shocked. How long had she been lost for? She looked up at the sun and noticed that it was lower than it should be. It must have been around three or four in the afternoon. "Oh, I'm sorry, Merlin. I lost track of time…"

"Not to worry," Merlin said with a smile. "I'd wanted to come down here anyway. I haven't been to the Zero District in quite a while. But best hurry, we wouldn't want the others getting all worked up for nothing. Yuffie is convinced you've been captured by the enemy!" he said with a laugh.

Aila laughed nervously along with him, her thoughts flickering back to the two Nobodies who had been there just moments before.

"I say, what's that?" Merlin asked, looking at something behind Aila.

"Hm?" Aila asked, turning to see what he was looking at. She didn't see anything. "What's what?"

Merlin didn't answer as he shuffled past her, his eyes locked onto something. Aila followed wondering what in the world was so interesting, when finally she saw it. Aila couldn't believe her eyes. There, wedged between two buildings, was what looked like a rather large book.

"_The Adventures of Winnie the Pooh_," she read aloud with awe, the title scrawled in neat black letters on the book's side.

"My word!" Merlin exclaimed, bending down to examine the object. "How on earth did this get here?" He attempted to pull the book out, but it was wedged in tight. "Oh, come on, now." He took out his wand. "Get out of there. Come on." With a wave of his wand, the book began to pull itself free, struggling to escape the hold of the buildings. After a few moments of effort, the book was freed, and it floated gracefully to Merlin's outstretched hands. "There we are," Merlin said with a smile.

"Wow," Aila said, completely amazed. Pooh's storybook… she was actually looking at _Pooh's storybook_!

"Ah, yes, that's Sora on the cover," Merlin said, misinterpreting her amazement. "He has some friends in this book, you see," he explained.

"That's cool," Aila said, not taking her eyes off the book. Snapping out of it, she decided she should probably be a bit more curious than that. "Oh, so, people live in this book?"

"Why, this is more than just a book, child," Merlin said, his eyes twinkling happily. "It contains an entire world in its pages."

"There's a world in the book?" Aila asked, feigning ignorance.

"Oh, yes," Merlin said, looking at the book fondly. "Worlds come in all different shapes and sizes."

Aila nodded. Her stomach suddenly grumbled, and she realized just how hungry she was.

Merlin chuckled. "Perhaps you should be getting back," he said. "I'm going to see if I can't find any other treasures down here. Go on."

Aila smiled. "Okay, I'll see you back at the house." She waved and walked back in the direction of the main town, grinning as she walked. She could barely contain her excitement. The Hundred Acre Wood had always been one of her favorite worlds; it reminded her of when she was little, when she would watch The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh on TV.

Not only that, but finding the book meant that the storyline was indeed moving forward. She looked up to the sky and grinned.

Sora was coming back.

KHKHKHKHKHKH

Hooray! The plot is moving forward!

Sooo who thinks Axel and Demyx were actually being nice just to be nice? Anyone? You in the back, is your hand raised? Oh, you're just yawning. So no one thinks they just wanted to help her out?

…Yeah, me neither. How boring would that be?? If I made all the Organization members nice and helpful, then that would kind of screw up the entire game, right? Right.

So why were they being so helpful, you ask? The answer will be revealed… probably not for a while. I can't go revealing the entire plot right away, silly ^_^

Hopefully won't freak out again and I'll be able to post the next chapter in one or two weeks. I tend to like posting on the weekends (when the site lets me), just in case anyone who likes this story and wants me to continue but for some reason is not adding it to their alerts wants to know when to find it.

Thanks for reading! **Please review and tell me what you think so far!** And feel free to give me ideas on pairings (I'm still leaning towards not pairing Aila with anyone unless people really want to see it) or what you think will happen etc etc. I could always use the advice.

See you next time!

~Fade


	7. Let the Games Begin

What's this?? I'm posting a new chapter in under a week?! And not only that, but look at the little scroll bar thingy. It's tiny, right? That's because this chapter is SEVENTEEN PAGES LONG. That's right, my loyal readers! You wanted more, you got it!

I must say, I'm not perfectly happy with this chapter, even though it was suuuuper fun to write… I feel like some parts don't flow like they should. BUT you'll be happy to know that this chapter has some very important information in it (more plot, yay!) and I hope you all enjoy it. It gets a little wordy at some parts (**but don't skip because it's all important!!**) but there are **TWO FIGHT SCENES** in this chapter, so there's plenty of action as well! I think I might be getting at least a little better at writing fight scenes… Hopefully… I dunno, you tell me! (Seriously, review and tell me please)

Ooookay, on with the story! My author's notes seem to be getting longer and longer…

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. I only own Aila and her family.

_________________

"_Life, like all other games, becomes fun when one realizes that it's just a game." --Nerijus Stasiulis_

**Chapter 7: Let the Games Begin**

After buying herself some noodles for lunch in the Market Place, Aila casually made her way over to the Burrow. Merlin had told her to hurry, but all that wandering around in alleyways with two Nobodies who may or may not be evil had kind of worn her out. And besides, the Committee couldn't be _that_ worried. She'd only been gone for a few hours.

A few minutes later, she was at Merlin's house.

"Hey guys, I'm back," Aila said as she opened the door. However, before she could even step foot inside, she was attacked by a certain overly excited ninja.

"AILA! YOU'RE ALIVE!!"

"Yes Yuffie, I'm alive," Aila said, her words muffled as she was consumed in Yuffie's death hug.

"Where have you been?" Cid asked. Aila looked over to see the remaining members of the Committee all giving her looks ranging from relief to annoyance.

"In the Zero District."

"For over four hours?" Leon asked, his eyes narrowing suspiciously. Leon could always tell when Aila was lying (not that it was that hard), and so Aila's plan was to be as vague as possible. That way, if she was tricky, she could avoid lying all together while simultaneously avoiding telling everyone that she'd been fraternizing with the enemy, albeit against her will.

"Yeah, I… Yuffie can you please get off me I can't breathe!" The ninja let her go, and Aila took a deep breathe before continuing. "I kind of got lost…"

There was a collective "oh" among the group, and it was clear from their facial expressions that no further explanation was needed. Aila sweatdropped. She didn't get lost that often, did she?

"Only you could manage to get yourself lost in the Zero District," Cid laughed, shaking his head. Aila scowled.

"I'll have you know, it's like a freaking maze down there! You guys should really put in directories or something…"

"Did you leave the main streets?" Leon sighed in a tone that said he already knew the answer.

"…Maybe…"

"Well no wonder you got lost! Nobody goes into the alleys in the Zero District!" Yuffie said, laughing at her pupil's ignorance.

Aila scowled at her. "That would have been helpful to know _five hours ago_…"

"We told you to stay on the main streets," Yuffie said, crossing her arms.

"Yeah, but if you'd told me that the reason was because I'd get lost in a gigantic labyrinth I might have actually listened to you!"

"You should always listen to us, silly!" Yuffie said, wagging her finger. "We always have good reasons for telling you to do stuff."

"You told me not to step on the third stone to the left of the door because it would 'anger the Heartless,'" Aila deadpanned.

"Hey, every time I step on it the Heartless show up!" Yuffie cried defensively.

"Right away?" Cid asked, not even bothering to take his eyes off the computer.

"Well, sometimes it takes them a few minutes… or hours… but eventually they show up, and they're maaaaaad," Yuffie said, nodding her head as if agreeing with herself. Everyone else just sighed.

"So Aila, have you eaten yet?" Aerith asked.

Aila smiled. "Yeah, I just grabbed some noodles at the Market Place a few minutes ago. Thanks for asking though."

"Alright," Leon said, looking at the clock on the computer. "Yuffie, Cid, Aerith, its time to go check out the castle."

At the word 'castle' Aila was immediately paying attention. "You guys are going to the castle?"

Aerith nodded. "We're going to see if we can find any useful information on the Heartless."

"That's right! Even if Ansem did end up being super evil, he did a lot of research on the Heartless when he lived in the castle," Yuffie explained.

Aila fidgeted. "Erm… I don't have to go, right?" The castle in Hollow Bastion was not somewhere she wanted to visit. Ever. And she had two very good reasons for wanting to stay away from it. First of all, it was extremely dark in there, not a place where someone with a slight phobia of the dark would generally want to be. And second of all, she would surely get lost the moment she stepped through the door. It was a gigantic, dark, maze-like castle! If she could manage to get lost in the Zero District (which was apparently quite a feat), she would have no trouble getting herself lost in there. She even got lost in there when she was playing the game… multiple times… and she'd had a little map in the corner of the screen and everything…

"No," Leon said, making his way towards the door. "Someone's got to stay here and guard the place until Merlin gets back."

Aila breathed a sigh of relief and grinned. "Aye aye, cappy!" she said with a small salute.

"We'll be back in a couple hours," Aerith assured. Aila blinked. That really _was_ a big castle if it was going to take them a couple of hours just to explore…

"Don't touch the computer," Cid warned sternly.

Aila pouted. "You don't trust me?"

"No," Cid replied. "Don't touch it."

Aila sighed. "Fine, I won't touch the computer."

Cid nodded and headed out the door with the others, leaving Aila all alone in the tiny house.

For a few seconds, Aila just stood there, not really sure what to do. "…Well this is boring."

She sighed and sat down in the computer chair, spinning herself in circles. She stared at the computer as it spun by, its gigantic screen reflecting her own image back at her. She slowed, staring at the keyboard. Cid was so overprotective of his technology. It wasn't like Aila was going to break the thing. Heck, she had a laptop back home, and she could use it all by herself! It never spontaneously combusted or anything!

Her hand hovered over the power button. It's not like Cid would know if she just used the computer for a little while, right?

"I do hope you're not thinking of touching Cid's computer."

"Ah!" Aila yelped, nearly falling out of the chair in surprise. She turned to see Merlin appear behind her, Pooh's storybook still in his arms. "You almost gave me a heart attack!" Aila said, recovering from the scare.

"Oh dear, that wouldn't have been very pleasant," Merlin said with a chuckle. "I'm sorry I startled you. You would have gotten more than just a scare if I'd allowed your finger to get any closer to that button, however." Aila raised an eyebrow, and Merlin's eyes twinkled mischievously. "Cid has installed quite a nasty security system on that thing, with a little help from my magic of course."

Aila eyed the computer apprehensively and pushed her chair away from it slightly. Merlin chuckled once again. "Don't worry, dear, it doesn't leave any permanent damage." Aila laughed nervously. If the wizard had intended that statement to be comforting, he had failed miserably. _'Mental note: Don't touch the computer. Ever.'_

"So," Aila said, changing the subject as she scooted even further away from the booby-trapped piece of technology. "Did you find anything else in the Zero District?"

"I'm afraid not," Merlin said with a sigh.

"Well, I'm sure Sora will be happy to hear that you found that book."

Merlin smiled. "Oh yes! He most certainly will be!"

"Hopefully he'll come back soon so you can tell him the good news."

Merlin's eyes twinkled with excitement. "Oh no, that won't do. Sora will want to know about this right away. There's no time for those boys' dilly dallying."

Aila tried her hardest not to smile. She knew what was coming. "Does their Gummi Ship have some sort of communication device so we can tell him now?"

"Unfortunately, that ship's communications are limited to Disney Castle, Donald and Goofy's home world."

"Well then won't we just have to wait for them to show up on their own?" Aila asked, playing dumb. She could barely contain her excitement.

Merlin chuckled. "You underestimate me, child. I can use my magic to summon the Gummi Ship and bring them to Hollow Bastion straight away!"

"Wow, that's really cool!" Aila said, her anticipation growing with every moment.

"Yes, it is quite 'cool'," Merlin said happily, and Aila had to restrain herself from laughing. A word like "cool" coming out of the old wizard's mouth just sounded wrong. Merlin shuffled over to Aila and handed her the book. "Here, would you hold this for me, dear?" he asked, taking out his wand.

Aila eagerly took the book, and nearly dropped it. It was so heavy! She rested it on her lap and gently ran her fingers along the spine, looking at the cover fondly. Then she thought of something. "What if you try to summon them and they're not in the ship? Would the ship just leave without them?" She had always wondered about that…

"No, no, of course not," Merlin said, pushing up his sleeves as he prepared to cast his spell. "They will need to start the ship in order for it to fly here. My magic may be strong, but I cannot fly an inactive ship across the galaxy. Now then, I will need absolute silence, if you please…" Aila nodded, and Merlin cleared his throat. "_Arcesso navis de ignotus locus, eo ire itum universitas modo!_"

Aila gasped inwardly as he finished the spell. The air shifted, and it was almost as if she could _feel_ the magic as it was cast. Merlin continued to repeat the spell, sending out a signal to wherever the trio might be. Aila concentrated on being as still as possible, not wanting to distract the wizard. She didn't know much about magic, but it was obvious that a spell like this required a massive amount of concentration.

This continued on for about ten minutes or so. Aila was becoming restless; sitting perfectly still for ten minutes was not an easy task, and it didn't help that she'd been fighting the urge to scratch an itch on her nose for the past few minutes as well. She scowled, wondering why people's noses always seemed to itch only when they were unable to scratch them…

After what felt like ages to Aila, Merlin lowered his wand. "That ought to do the trick," he said with a nod.

"How long do you think it'll be until they get here?" Aila asked, scratching her nose.

"Oh, I would say no more than a few minutes. They are not that far off."

Merlin put his wand away, looking rather worn out. "Are you okay Merlin?" Aila asked.

"Of course, dear. But a spell like that requires a lot of energy, unfortunately."

"Here, do you want to sit down?" Aila offered, standing up and gesturing to the chair.

"Yes, thank you," Merlin said, talking a seat. Aila sat down on the floor and set the book in her lap.

"Where the devil is everyone?" Merlin asked suddenly. Aila blinked. Had he just noticed that no one else was there?

"They all went to check out the castle," Aila told him. "They said they'd be back in a couple hours."

"Ah, that's right, I'd forgotten about that." Merlin chuckled. "I guess my poor old memory isn't quite what it used to be, eh?" Aila laughed. Merlin's long-term memory was so good he was practically a walking encyclopedia! He could remember practically every fact he'd ever read, and could tell you exactly which book each fact had come from. It was his short-term memory that sometimes gave him trouble. He'd often forget where he put a potion bottle or a spell book moments after he set it down, which Aila had to admit was kind of hilarious. Her theory was that his brain was so stuffed full of random facts that some new stuff just wouldn't fit in there anymore. He was just too dang smart.

Suddenly, Aila heard movement near the door. For a second she was filled with excitement, thinking that the trio had already arrived. Her excitement vanished, however, when a Shadow began to rise up from the floor.

"What?!" Aila cried, scrambling to her feet. "I thought Heartless couldn't get in here!"

"Oh dear," Merlin said with a sigh. "It appears that I used a bit too much power in that last spell; the magic supporting the barrier must have been depleted. I will have to regain my strength before I can re-create the barrier…"

"Well that's not good…" Aila said as three Shadows and four Soldiers appeared in the room. She quickly handed the book to Merlin and summoned her weapon. "Well, at least there's only a few of them…"

She charged at the Heartless, swinging her staff into a Shadow and sending it flying into a bookshelf.

"Do try not to break anything," Merlin said, standing up and taking out his wand once again. He placed Pooh's storybook behind the bookshelf in the corner (not the one the Heartless had just crashed into, don't worry) so that it wouldn't be damaged during the battle.

A Soldier leapt at her and she dodged, bringing her staff down on its helmet with a satisfying _clang!_

"Defend!" Aila shouted as a Shadow and another Soldier lunged at her, her spell sending them flying into a wall.

"Very good, Aila!" Merlin praised, casting a Blizzaga spell on the Shadow that had flown into the bookshelf. It vanished instantly. "I do believe you've mastered that one. Why don't you try using a Fire spell?"

"Er… okay, I'll try," Aila said uncertainly. She pointed her staff at a Soldier and concentrated. "FIRE!" A small, rather unimpressive fireball shot out of her staff and, much to her surprise, hit the Heartless, causing it to fall back. Hitting the thing she was aiming for was one of the most difficult things for Aila when it came to magic, so she couldn't help but feel rather proud of herself, ignoring the fact that her fireball was far to weak to actually do any significant damage.

"Yes, that's right!" Merlin encouraged. "You're starting to get the idea. You'll be casting powerful offensive spells in no time."

Aila kind of doubted that she'd be casting any 'powerful offensive spells' anytime soon, but she appreciated the support. She shot another pathetic fireball at the same Soldier, hitting it once again. She grinned.

Merlin pointed his wand at the door, and it swung open. "No need to exert yourself too much. Just try to drive them out of the house."

"Okay," Aila said, firing one final fireball at the Soldier and sending it flying out the door. She spun around and delivered a horizontal slash to a Shadow that was preparing to pounce, causing it to fade away. The remaining Shadow whizzed by her and out the door, thanks to a blast from Merlin. Aila looked at the last Soldier standing in the middle of the room and began to run towards it. 'Wait… hadn't there been three Soldiers left?'

Before that thought had even been fully processed, she felt something slam into her from behind. She gasped and fell, hitting the floor hard. She heard an "Oof!" and saw Merlin fall as well; the two forgotten Soldiers had attacked them from behind.

"Ow…" Aila said, shaking her head. She gasped once again and held up her staff, barely blocking one of the Soldier's attacks as it took a swipe at her head. "Gah, they're tougher than they look," she said, getting very annoyed.

"Confound it! Where are those boys?" Merlin said, sounding frustrated as well. He was obviously still very low on energy, which worried Aila.

With a yell, she pushed the Soldier attacking her away and stood up. "Alright, this is getting old," she said angrily. She'd fought quite enough Heartless that day, and she was not in the mood to fight these little nuisances any longer than necessary. Sensing movement, all three Soldiers charged at her. She closed her eyes, concentrating as hard as she could…

"WIND!" she cried, thrusting her staff into the air. A gust of wind shot out from her staff and circled her, creating a barrier and knocking her three opponents away. The Soldiers fell to the ground, dazed. After a few moments, they got up and headed for the open door, apparently having finally had enough. Aila's Aero spell faded as they retreated.

Aila ran over to Merlin, who was still on the floor. "You alright?" she asked.

"That was wonderful!" Merlin exclaimed, completely ignoring her question. "That was quite successful for your first Aero spell, well done! You certainly seem to have a strength with defensive spells!"

Aila blushed and grinned proudly, offering her hand to the wizard. "Here, let me help you."

As she helped him up, she heard the sound of people running into the room. She and Merlin both looked towards the door to see Sora, Donald, and Goofy running towards them. Aila wanted to jump for joy. They were back!

"Welcome back!" she greeted happily. The trio smiled at her and slowed down, realizing that the danger had already been dealt with.

"Well now…" Merlin said as the trio reached them, clearing his throat and breathing heavily, still worn out from all of the magic he'd used recently. "Took your time, did you?" Aila looked at the clock on the opposite wall and raised her eyebrows in surprise. Had that battle really taken over ten minutes? It hadn't seemed that long. But then, she always seemed to lose track of time when she was fighting.

"Oh, was it you who summoned us, Merlin?" Goofy asked.

"Yes, yes…" Merlin said, stumbling a bit. Aila quickly grabbed his arm and steadied him. "But it seems I used too much power in doing so, and those infernal Heartless…" He sighed in annoyance. Aila let go slowly, deciding that he was steady now. "Thank you, dear," he said kindly. She smiled.

"So, what's up?" Sora asked, unsure why they'd been summoned.

"Well, I happened to stumble across this in the Zero District. Ah, now where did I put that thing…"

"I'll get it," Aila said with a small laugh. She ran over to the bookshelf in the corner and grabbed the hidden book, carrying it very carefully back to the group. When she reached them, she held the book out to Donald, who immediately recognized it. He took it, and the trio looked at it in surprise.

"Pooh's storybook!" Sora said happily.

Merlin chuckled. "That's right. I know you're a good friend of Winnie the Pooh, Sora—that's why I summoned you." He then frowned. "And when I did, we were attacked by the Heartless. Of course Aila and I fought back with some rather powerful magic, but then I began to fear the book would be damaged, so I…" Merlin noticed that Aila was giving him a rather peculiar look, and he stumbled over his words. 'He's really embellishing the story,' she thought with a sweatdrop. Merlin looked back at the trio and cleared his throat. "Now, just a moment. Leon and the others need to hear this too."

Aila blinked. "They do?" She doubted they wanted to hear him exaggerate.

"Why yes! I'm sure Leon will want to know that we've found the book. And you accomplished a new spell in this battle, not to mention your Fire spell improved greatly as well! I'm sure they'll want to hear all about it. They may even want a demonstration!"

Aila sweatdropped once again. "What?! Aw man, come on! Can't I take a break? I've been fighting all day…"

Merlin smiled. "Oh, come now, Aila. A bit more practice will do you good. I'd better go find them. Be back in a jiffy."

In a puff of smoke, he vanished. Aila sighed. She knew that a demonstration would no doubt turn into hours of practice, and quite frankly, she was already exhausted. She sat down on the floor, not even interested in making it over to the chair. At least she could take a break for a few minutes…

"Gawrsh, are you alright?" Goofy asked.

Aila looked up at the trio. "Oh, yeah, I'm just tired is all. It's been a long day."

"It's Aila, right?" Sora asked. Aila nodded. "It's nice to see you again," he said with a smile.

Aila grinned back. "You too. But, we can talk later. You probably want to look at that book, right?" Aila said with a knowing smile.

Sora smiled and looked at the book. "Yeah, I wonder how Pooh's doing?"

"Wanna find out?" Donald asked.

"Yeah!" Sora said excitedly. Donald undid the latch on the book and held it open in front of Sora. Aila watched intently as Sora positioned himself, looking like he was going to run at the book.

"Sora…" Goofy said, obviously thinking Sora should wait until Merlin came back. True, Merlin had _implied_ that he'd wanted Sora to wait before going into the book, but he'd never actually _said_ those words exactly…

"Cover for me, okay?" Sora told him, giving a thumbs up before turning back to face the book. Suddenly, a light began to shine out of the pages, engulfing Sora and pulling him into the book. The light faded, and Sora was gone.

"Whoaaaa!" Aila exclaimed. "That was so cool!" Watching someone be sucked into a book was pretty freaking awesome.

"Where should we put it?" Donald asked, obviously not wanting to hold it the entire time. Aila didn't blame him; it was really heavy.

"Hm…" Aila said, looking around the room. She knew what she was looking for: the podium that the book sat on in the game. It had to be somewhere… Aila got up and walked around the bookshelves. "Aha!" she exclaimed, having located it hidden under a stack of books. Aila cleared the books away and set them in a pile on the floor next to the podium. "How about here?"

"Perfect!" Donald approved, waddling over to her. Aila helped him place it gently on top of the podium (he was a bit too short to do it himself).

"Are you sure Merlin won't mind if you move his books?" Goofy asked.

"Nah, he won't care," Aila said with a wave of her hand. "Besides, I learned a new spell today, so he can't get mad at me!"

"What did you learn?" Donald asked.

"Aero!" Aila answered proudly.

"Congratulations!" Goofy said.

Aila smiled at him. "Thanks!" The door squeaked, and Aila looked up, confused. "Is someone else here?"

The three of them walked around the bookshelves and gasped. There in the doorway was a Shadow Heartless, pushing against the door and peering inside, as if checking to see if anyone was home.

"A Heartless!" Goofy exclaimed.

"Ah, jeez, not again!" Aila said, smacking her forehead in exasperation. She glared at the Heartless, who had still not noticed the three of them. "You stupid thing… STAY OUT!!" she cried, summoning her weapon and charging for the Heartless. Startled by her outburst, the Shadow looked up at her just in time to be hit in the face by Aila's staff.

"Come on, Goofy!" she heard Donald shout behind her, and the three of them ran outside to find that the house was surrounded by Heartless. They each took a fighting stance in front of the door.

"Don't let them get inside," Aila told Donald and Goofy, who nodded. She then charged at the Shadow she'd hit, who was still in the process of getting up, and whacked it again, causing it to fade.

She jumped back as another Shadow swiped at her and countered with a horizontal strike, sending the Shadow into another attacking Heartless. She began to bring her staff down in a vertical swing on top of the two when she noticed two Heartless running at her from either side. Thinking quickly, she continued to swing her staff down with her right hand while raising her left hand above her. "Defend!" she shouted as her staff connected with the two injured Heartless, a shield appearing around her just in the nick of time, causing the two charging Heartless to smash headfirst into it. She smirked at their pain.

For about three seconds, Aila was aware of two interesting facts. First of all, although she was holding her weapon in her right hand when she cast Reflect, she could have sworn she'd felt the spell being released from her left hand, which was very odd. In order to cast a spell, the magic needed to travel through an object (such as a wand or a weapon) in order to become concentrated to the point where it could be controlled and released. However, if the spell had indeed been released from her left hand, then she had just ignored that rule, which as far as she knew was impossible.

She wasn't exactly sure why she had thrust her left hand, her weaponless hand, above her head in the first place. It had been an instinctive reaction; she'd already built up too much momentum to stop her weapon, and yet she needed to protect herself from the attacking enemies. And so her body had decided to attempt two things at once, her left hand going instinctively into position to cast a protective spell, her right continuing with the weapon to finish off the enemies in front of her. And although she should not have been able to accomplish both things without two weapons, somehow it had worked.

The second interesting fact that briefly registered in her mind was the fact that the shield around her had looked… different. She hadn't really been paying attention to what it looked like, but in the corner of her mind she registered that there were some slight differences between the shield she'd just produced and the one that is normally created when using Reflect.

For starters, the shape of a normal Reflect shield is a dome made up of hexagons; it kind of reminded Aila of a honeycomb. While the shield she'd just cast was still a dome shape, it contained no hexagons; it was smooth and round, kind of like a bubble.

The other difference was the color. A Reflect shield has a light blue tint to it, but other than that it has not color; it was mostly clear. The shield Aila had just cast was tinted white. She had still been able to see through it, but she wouldn't classify it as 'clear' exactly. It was definitely white.

Unfortunately, since she was in the midst of battle, Aila had no time to ponder this information like she would have liked to. Three seconds was all the time she had to even attempt to register it, let alone make any sense out of it, for that was the amount of time between when the spell had been cast and when she was attacked once again. And so, as she swung her staff into the oncoming Heartless, the information was shoved into the very back corners of her mind, deemed by her subconscious to be insignificant, and it all but forgotten.

If she'd only had a few more seconds, she would have realized just how significant that information actually was.

"Sora! Hurry up!" she heard Donald yell.

Sora ran out of the house with his Keyblade already drawn, ready to help. Unfortunately, he'd forgotten one very important thing…

"Did ya bring the book, Sora?" Goofy asked, glancing back at his friend. The four of them were all facing a group of about seven or eight Shadow Heartless, trying to keep them away from the door.

Sora's eyes widened. He looked back at the open door just in time to see three Soldiers running out of the house, one of them clutching Pooh's storybook in its claws.

"AH! How'd you get in there?!" Aila yelled, extremely annoyed that the Heartless had managed to sneak by them.

"Hey!" Sora exclaimed, taking off after the Soldiers with Aila close behind.

"Give that back!" Donald shouted, he and Goofy running after them as well.

"Yah!" Sora cried, hurling his Keyblade at the Heartless carrying the book, causing it to trip and the book to fly out of its claws.

Aila lunged and caught the book right before it hit the ground, rolling on her side as she caught it to lessen the impact. "I got it!" she said happily, hurriedly clamoring to her feet. Unfortunately for her, the Heartless apparently _really_ wanted the book, and she suddenly found herself surrounded by dozens of Soldiers and Shadows, all of them looking at her with hungry yellow eyes. "…Uh-oh."

"DEFEND!" Aila shouted as the Heartless all leapt at her at once, her staff held high over her head and he familiar honeycomb shield protecting her and the book. The Heartless bounced off the shield, but within moments they were all up and charging again, which was not good. The sucky thing about Reflect was that it only lasted for a few seconds; her shield had already begun to fade. She cast the spell again, but she couldn't keep that up for long; she was nearly out of magic power, and she was still exhausted from wandering around the alleys and fighting the Heartless with Axel and Demyx earlier. 'Was that just today? It seems like so long ago… today's been a long day…'

"Aila!" Sora called, and Aila looked over to see him hacking up a few Soldiers to her left. He then raised his arms over his head and looked at her expectantly. Did he want her to throw it?! Was he insane?! She could not throw things very far at all, especially not big heavy hardback novels… with sharp corners… even if she could throw it far enough she'd probably accidentally hit him in the head and maim him or something. And then she'd be known as 'The Girl Who Maimed the Keyblade Master and Doomed Us All.' That was not a very appealing title…

"Here, Aila! I'm open!" Sora called again. Oh God, he did want her to throw it. It's not a basketball, Sora! It's a gigantic heavy book with an entire world and people (er… stuffed animals) inside it! …And it has sharp corners!

Aila took a deep breath as she finished casting what must have been about her fifth, and probably final, Reflect. She was almost completely out of energy; there was no way she could cast the spell again. It looked like she only had one option…

"Catch!" she said, throwing the book with all her might in the direction of Sora.

It was a good thing Sora was only a couple yards away from her, because as it turned out, 'all her might' barely got the book over about nine feet.

It was also a good thing that Sora was athletic and could jump really far, because she ended up throwing it about five feet too far to the left.

Oops.

But, because he's the Keyblade master, of course he caught the book… barely. He almost tripped over a Shadow trying to get to it before it hit the ground.

"Sorry!" Aila said apologetically, rubbing the back of her neck. "I can't throw, obviously… or aim…"

"That's alright!" Sora laughed, holding the book like a football and dodging a few Soldiers. The Heartless were now all going after him, following him wherever he went, which actually made it a lot easier for the other three to attack them since they were so distracted. "Goofy! Go long!" Sora yelled, throwing the book right before a Soldier could grab it.

"A-hyuck! I got it!" Goofy called, holding his shield out like a catcher's mitt as he ran after the book. He caught it, and Sora, Donald, and Aila were able to destroy a few more Heartless as they chased after him. "Donald!" Goofy exclaimed, spinning his shield around and letting the book fly towards his friends.

"Stop!" Donald commanded, pointing his staff at the book. It froze in midair, and Aila immediately recognized the spell Stopra. Donald jumped up and grabbed the book, laughing evilly as the Heartless began to chase him.

Aila then noticed that Sora, Donald, and Goofy were all laughing (Sora and Goofy not quite as evilly as Donald, of course). In fact, they seemed to be having the time of their lives. Aila stopped chasing the Heartless for a second and watched the trio. They'd turned the fight into a game, and despite the fact that they were fighting extremely dangerous beings and trying to protect a very delicate and vulnerable world, they were all having fun.

"Aila! Catch!" Aila whipped her head around to see Donald in the process of throwing the book to her.

"W-what?!" Aila cried, panicking as the book came closer and closer. If she couldn't throw, then obviously she couldn't catch! Why would he throw it to her?! Throw it to Sora, for crying out loud! He's right next to you!

Aila reached out her arms and by some miracle was able to catch the book. Unfortunately, she'd forgotten how heavy it was, and she toppled over as soon as it was in her grasp. "Ngh…" she groaned, sitting up, only to come face to face with a very angry looking Soldier. "GAH!!"

She bolted up and sprinted away from the Soldier, hugging the book protectively. She spotted Sora running next to her, keeping pace with her, like he was covering her or something while she had the book. She had no intention of holding onto it, however; being chased by the Heartless was _not_ fun. Sora was closest, so he was getting the book.

"Here you go!" she said, tossing the book to him carefully, which was particularly difficult because they were both running. He caught it with little trouble, though (they were only about three feet away from each other) and grinned before breaking off in another direction, leading the Heartless away from her and allowing _her_ to go back to chasing _them_, which she much preferred to them chasing her.

Unfortunately, that would not last for long.

Sora passed the book off to Goofy, and Goofy passed it off to Aila again, who immediately gave it to Donald, who threw it to Sora, who passed it to…

"Stop throwing the book to me!" Aila said, almost running face first into a wall as she attempted to catch the book AGAIN. At least she hadn't dropped it yet… "You are putting an entire world's fate in the hands of a very uncoordinated person!"

"You can't be that uncoordinated, you haven't dropped it yet!" Sora called from somewhere behind her (she was too afraid to look because, of course, the Heartless were right on her tail again).

"Yes, which means that I'm due to drop it any minute now!" Aila argued, having to change directions quickly as she hit a dead end. "And I don't like being chased by Heartless! How about you three just toss the book to each other?"

"You're on our side, Aila, you have to play too!" Sora laughed. If Aila weren't scared for her life, she would have stopped in shock. It was only by pure survival instinct that her feet kept moving. Were they trying to include her in their game? Was that why they kept passing it to her, to make her feel like part of a team?

Suddenly, Sora was running next to her again. He held out his hand. "Don't be a ball hog though!"

Aila blinked, staring at his face for a moment as they both kept running. He was grinning, obviously having a blast playing this weird 'game' he'd invented. Aila would have thought he didn't take his job of fighting Heartless and protecting the worlds seriously, but as she looked closer, there was something in his eyes that told her he completely understood the very real danger he was facing. Was he just choosing to ignore it?

Well hey, if he wanted to pretend it was a game, who was she to stop him?

Aila grinned back, and then started laughing. "I'm not a ball hog!" she protested, placing the book in his outstretched hand as they continued to run from the now dwindling number of Heartless.

Sora laughed. "No, that's right, you're a _book_ hog!" he taunted, before running off in another direction. Aila laughed along with him and ran after the Heartless, Donald and Goofy falling in step beside her. They all laughed as their game of keep away continued, and suddenly Aila found herself feeling more energized. This wasn't a battle; it was a game. They were just trying to defeat the other team. The competitive side of her gave her strength, releasing adrenaline, urging her to win. Suddenly she was even throwing and catching better, thinking less about her fear of dropping the book and more about her team's victory.

Sora had the book at the moment, and there were only a handful of Heartless left. They were going to win! Aila cheered inwardly as she finished off another Shadow. She could taste victory, and it was sweet!

That's when she saw them.

Five Soldier Heartless had been hiding on one of the roofs, waiting for their moment to strike. Sora was just about to pass under them, and they jumped, falling closer and closer to Sora, who was completely unaware of the incoming danger…

"Sora! Look out!" Aila yelled, but it was too late.

"Ah!" Sora cried out as the Heartless tackled him, sending him tumbling down to the ground, the book skidding one way, his Keyblade the other.

"Sora!" Donald and Goofy called, all traces of joking gone from their tones as they rushed to their friend's aid, showing no mercy as they destroyed any Heartless in their way.

The game was over.

One of the Heartless that had attacked Sora had now grabbed the book, holding it none to gently in its razor sharp claws. Aila glared at the Heartless and bolted after it as it tried to make its escape.

"Oh no you don't!" Aila cried, throwing her staff with all her might into the legs of the Soldier. It went down hard, the book still clutched in its grubby claws. Aila could see its claws digging into the book, ripping its cover. She growled. "Put that DOWN!" she shouted, delivering a final crushing blow to the Soldier, who finally faded away into nothing.

The book lay on the floor where the Heartless had been, it's cover slashed. Aila looked back at the others to find that they'd finished off the rest of the Heartless. Finally, the battle was over.

"You okay?" Aila asked Sora as the trio walked towards her.

He grinned. "Of course. Nice work catching that Heartless. It would have gotten away if you hadn't gotten to it in time."

"Yeah, well, I don't know if I was fast enough," Aila said sadly, looking down at the slightly mangled book.

Sora picked it up, a worried expression on his face. "Think it's okay?"

"Gawrsh, maybe ya better go back and make sure Pooh's all right," Goofy suggested.

"But what about Merlin?" Donald asked, remembering that the old wizard had told them to wait. But it's not like they'd listened to him before…

"Well, I guess we could explain…" Goofy began.

"I'm sure he'll understand," Aila assured.

"Great!" Sora said with a nod, obviously eager to see if the book was okay.

Donald took the book and looked at Goofy, who nodded. He then undid the latch and held the book open, just like he had before. It was immediately obvious that something was wrong. Aila could see the pages; they were originally filled with pictures of the different locations in the Hundred Acre Wood, but now they were almost completely blank. Aila frowned but said nothing. She knew that the book wasn't okay, and that Sora would have to find the missing pages all over again, but he'd figure that out on his own soon enough; there was really no need for her to tell him.

The book took Sora into its pages once again, and Aila, Donald, and Goofy put the book back on the podium inside.

Aila sighed. "We were so close to keeping it in one piece…"

"Aw, shucks, don't be sad," Goofy said, rubbing his nose. "We did our best."

"Yeah, and at least we were able to keep it from getting stolen," Donald said, holding up a finger. "If it's damaged, we can repair it, just like we did before."

Aila looked at the two Disney characters and couldn't help but smile. They had the whole 'look on the bright side' thing down to a science!

A puff of smoke appeared, and when it cleared Merlin was suddenly standing in the middle of the room.

He let out an exasperated sigh. "I don't know where those four wandered off too, but I do hope they know how to get out of wherever they are. I don't know why that castle has such a confusing floor plan…"

"So you couldn't find them, eh?" Aila asked, somewhat relieved. Looked like she wouldn't have to "demonstrate" her magic skills for them… at least not right now.

"No, I couldn't. Oh well, we'll just have to tell them about the book later. I say, where's Sora run off to?"

"Uh…" Aila, Donald, and Goofy all said in unison.

Merlin chuckled. "I knew he wouldn't be able to wait for me to get back. No matter, they're his friends after all." Merlin then seemed to notice that the three standing before him all looked quite a bit more worn out than when he'd left them. "Hm, did anything interesting happen while I was gone?"

Aila, Donald, and Goofy looked at each other.

"Well…"

KHKHKHKHKHKHKH

Woo! Aila got to fight with Sora, Donald, and Goofy! They're awfully silly, aren't they? You'd think they'd be more serious when fighting the bad guys…

Also, if anyone reading this speaks Latin... please don't tell me that the spell Merlin said makes no sense. I know. I speak absolutely no Latin, I just looked up random words to make the spell at least sort of have a meaning. Roughly translated, what Merlin says is _supposed_ to mean "Summon vessel from unknown location, travel universe now!" Lol I couldn't figure out how to say 'the' or 'an'... It sounds less cool once you know what it means, eh?

Ummm I don't really have much else to say… except, pleeeease review! I love you guys just for reading this, but reviews really do help a lot. They keep me motivated. Even if it's just like "Cool" or "Update soon" or a suggestion you have on how I can improve, anything. I like to hear from you guys.

And thanks so much to everyone who did review! I hope this did not disappoint!

Thanks for reading!

~ Fade


	8. A Working Vacation?

Well, well, well. Look who it is. It's that Fadedphantom girl. Ugh. She NEVER updates. It's been over TWO YEARS. That's just pathetic.

…

BUT BEHOLD! I have not forgotten about this story after all! I know, it's shocking. And yes, I know, probably most of my original readers have all moved on from the fanfiction scene at this point… but oh well! I'm picking this story up where it left off, and it WILL get finished! I have been extremely sick, and so today I broke out the PS2, and I was suddenly inspired once again! Yay!

I actually uhhh had this entire chapter basically ready when I opened the file tonight… I think I never posted it because I wasn't sure if I'd wanted it to end here, since this is kind of the point where the story could take two very different turns. I've decided to post this chapter up so you'd all at least have SOMETHING new to read while I decide which way this story is going to go. I think I've made my decision at this point (I mean, it's been two freaking years…) so hopefully you all like where it's about to go!

Anyways, I will stop rambling now and let you all read (if there's anyone out there still interested that is… hehe).

So without further ado…

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts. I only own Aila and her family.

"_Don't walk in front of me; I may not follow. Don't walk behind me; I may not lead. Just walk beside me and be my friend." – Albert Camus_

**Chapter 8: A Working Vacation?**

"I see," Merlin said as Aila, Donald, and Goofy finished explaining what had happened. "It looks like the Heartless ran off with a few pages as well, hm?"

Aila blinked and looked at the book. She'd known it had been torn a little, but she hadn't seen the Heartless rip any pages out… However, upon closer inspection, she could indeed see the torn remains of some of the missing pages. She frowned.

"Gawrsh, do you think everyone's alright?" Goofy asked worriedly as he too inspected the book.

"Well, we'll know soon enough," Merlin said as the book began to glow. The four of them took a few steps back and watched as Sora reappeared in front of them, a rather confused look on his face. Aila recalled that Pooh had forgotten him, and she frowned once again.

"Couldn't be bothered to wait up for an old wizard, eh?" Merlin asked jokingly.

"Sorry about that…" Sora said, looking at the floor, his brows furrowed in confusion. Donald and Goofy shared looks of concern.

"How are things in there?" Merlin asked, snapping Sora back into reality. Sora looked back at the book.

"Well…" he began. He turned to face the group before him. "Pooh seems to have forgotten all about me. And not just me—all his other friends, too."

Donald gasped and Goofy let out a small "Huh?" Aila just looked at Sora sadly. He seemed really upset. Of course, who wouldn't be if they found out that one of their friends had forgotten all about them?

"I was afraid of that…" Merlin walked over to the book and gently picked it up, inspecting it carefully. "I suspect it has something to do with those pages the Heartless stole. You'll have to collect the torn pages and repair the book to put things right. This book is one of the world's most cherished elements. I was going to tell Leon I'd found it, but perhaps we should keep it between us for now."

Sora, Donald, and Goofy all nodded. "We will!" they promised in unison. Aila raised an eyebrow and resisted the urge to laugh. Were they all on the same brain wave or something?

Merlin looked at Aila. "You too Aila. Don't tell Leon, alright?"

"Uh, s-sure," Aila agreed with a nod. "But umm won't he notice it sitting right there?" Aila asked, pointing to the book sitting very conspicuously on the pedestal in front of them. "He comes in here a lot… he's bound to see it sooner or later…"

Merlin's eyes twinkled. "Ah, good point my dear." He placed one hand gently on the book and motioned for the rest of them to approach. "Everyone place a hand on the book. Quickly now."

The four did as they were told, and Aila couldn't help but wonder what Merlin was up to.

"Ahem," the old wizard said, clearing his throat. "Now then, what was that old spell again? Ah yes. _Terminus conscientia_."

Everyone (excluding Merlin of course) gasped as a jolt of energy shot up their arms. Merlin removed his hand, and the others did the same.

"What was that?" Sora asked.

"A spell that makes it so that only we can see the book," Merlin said proudly. "Now we don't have to worry about the others finding out about it until it's been restored to its original state."

The four nodded in understanding.

"We'll find those pages, don't you worry!" Donald exclaimed confidently.

"Right!" Sora agreed, and Goofy nodded.

"Good good," Merlin said. "Now, the book isn't the only thing that's cherished… " He took out a small, stone-like object and handed it to Sora. "This is for you, Sora."

"What is it?" Sora asked curiously.

"Simply concentrate on it with all your heart, and you need only say the word to summon an ally who will help in times of need."

"Like Simba and Mushu did, the last time we were here?" Goofy asked.

"Precisely," Merlin said with a nod.

Aila was frowning once again. She knew what was coming; it was time to say goodbye again. And they'd only just gotten back…

"Hey guys!"

"Ah!" Aila jumped as Yuffie appeared beside her, ninja-like as always. "Yuffie, could you _please_ stop doing that?"

"Hey, it's your own fault for not being aware of your surroundings!" Yuffie said with a laugh, tapping Aila lightly on the head. Aila scowled at her. "So," she said, turning to face the trio, "what brings you three back so soon?"

"Uh…" Sora said, trying to think of a reason that didn't involve the book. Donald and Goofy averted their eyes, trying to think of an excuse. The seconds passed, and Aila could tell that Yuffie was getting suspicious. Finally, she couldn't take the silence anymore. She had to say _something_ or Yuffie would find out about the book for sure!

…So of course she just said the very first thing that popped into her head.

"They, um, came back to eat!" She said quickly. _That's the best you could come up with? That's terrible!_

Yuffie blinked at her. "To eat?" she asked skeptically. Aila glanced at the trio, all of whom were giving her questioning looks.

"Uh, y-yeah, that's right," Aila said dumbly. Then she remembered something she and Yuffie had talked about on her very first day in this world: the restaurants in Hollow Bastion. "You know, traveling the worlds and all, they don't really get the chance to eat any good food, so, um, they decided to come back for a visit because Hollow Bastion has such good food."

For a second, Aila thought Yuffie would see through her lie. But then…

"…Oh! Wow, I didn't know traveling the worlds was so rough! Well then, why don't we all have dinner together? I'll go get the others. This'll be so much fun!" And with that, she dashed off to find the rest of the Restoration Committee.

Aila blinked. "…Wow, she actually bought that?"

"'We were hungry'? What kind of an excuse is that?" Sora asked with a laugh.

Aila crossed her arms in front of her. "Well I didn't see anyone else coming up with any bright ideas. And besides, it totally worked!" She grinned triumphantly.

"Hm, do you think Leon will believe that?" Goofy asked, putting a finger to his chin. Aila's face fell.

"Probably not," Merlin said with a slight chuckle. "But I doubt he'll pry. He generally minds his own business after all."

That was true, Aila thought with a smile. That was actually one of the things Aila liked most about Leon; he never pressured people to tell more than they wanted to. Suddenly, a thought struck her.

"Ah! Oh no!" She said, turning to face the trio. "You probably want to get back to saving the worlds as soon as possible, don't you? And I just signed you up to stay for dinner… Ack! I'm so sorry!"

Sora put up his hand, signaling for her to stop, and smiled. "Don't worry about it. Actually, I am pretty hungry…"

"Me too," Donald said, rubbing his stomach.

"Me three!" Goofy exclaimed.

"You can't fight Heartless on an empty stomach," Merlin scolded mockingly, wagging his finger.

"And besides, now that I think about it, the Gummi ship really could use a tune up… maybe I'll ask Cid about that too," Sora said, putting a finger to his chin and thinking about what needed to be fixed on the ship. Aila smiled, relieved that she hadn't just kept them on this world against their will.

The door flew open, causing everyone to jump, and Yuffie marched into the room, the rest of the Committee following behind her.

"So," she said, taking charge as soon as everyone was in the room. "What does everyone want to eat?"

Cid's hand shot into the air. "I vote pizza!"

Yuffie groaned. "You _always_ vote for pizza…"

Cid crossed his arms. "Well why not? It's the perfect combination of dairy, bread, vegetables, and meat. That's a balanced diet right there!"

"I don't think that counts as a balanced diet," Leon said, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, and we always have pizza," Aila said, referring to herself and Yuffie. Since Yuffie couldn't cook, they always tended to order out, and somehow, even though they were terribly sick of it, they always ended up deciding on pizza.

"We don't _always_ have pizza," Yuffie said defensively. "I made you breakfast once, remember?"

Cid put a hand to his mouth to stifle his laughter. Aila shuddered. Yuffie scowled at the two of them.

"Fine," Yuffie said with a huff. "Then why don't _you_ cook something?"

Aila looked at her like she was insane. "Yeah right, I don't know half the ingredients on this world. I'd probably end up poisoning you or something…"

"Well then, only use the things you know! Oooh, you could make us a recipe from your world!" Yuffie said with a grin.

"Hm, I am curious to see what kinds of meals they eat on your world," Aerith said thoughtfully.

Yuffie nodded. "That settles it, Aila is making dinner!"

"Wait, I didn't agree to that!" Aila protested, but her complaints fell on deaf ears.

"Haha, this oughta be good!" Cid said with a smirk.

"Come on, I'll take you to the store!" Yuffie said, grabbing Aila's hand and dragging her towards the door.

"Hey, no, Yuffie, I can't cook!" Aila said, digging her heals into the floor. But, of course, that didn't stop Yuffie from dragging her across the room.

"Nonsense! Anyone can cook!"

"You can't!"

"Well, I'm the exception to the rule."

"That's not a good thing you know."

"Shut up! You're making dinner and that's final! Your sensei commands it!"

As Aila was pulled out the door, she heard Sora ask, "Are they always like this?" to which Cid responded, "Yeah, pretty much." Aila sighed.

KHKHKHKHKHKHKHKHKH

After a rather painful shopping experience (Aila spent most of the time trying to identify foods she'd never seen before), the girls met everyone back at Yuffie's house. Much to Aila's relief, Aerith offered her assistance as soon as they walked in the door. Aerith was pretty competent in the kitchen, so her assistance really helped put Aila's mind at ease.

However, that didn't mean she wasn't still incredibly nervous.

"So, what are we making?" Aerith asked sweetly.

"Um… Bean and Barley Soup," Aila said, unpacking all the groceries. She'd decided to go with something simple, partially because she could only make simple things, and partially because she had to make due with very few recognizable ingredients.

"Soup?" Aerith asked.

"Yeah… I was gonna make Fettucini Alfredo, but then I realized that you guys don't have the pre-made sauce here, and I really don't know how to make it from scratch…"

"Fettachiny Alfred-o, eh? Sounds fancy," Cid said. Everyone except for Aerith and Aila was sitting around the TV, Sora and Donald arguing over what to watch.

"Not really," Aila said, getting out a piece of paper and writing down the soup's recipe to make sure she remembered it all. "It's one of my favorite things to make because it only takes a few minutes… as long as you have the pre-made sauce, at least." Aila looked at the recipe and scowled. She'd forgotten how time consuming this was going to be… Hopefully Yuffie didn't get _too_ impatient…

"So, what do we do first?" Aerith asked, opening cabinets and drawers in search of cooking utensils.

"We need to heat one tablespoon of olive oil in a saucepan over medium high heat," Aila recited, glad that she'd made this dish enough times to commit the recipe to memory. Aerith nodded and got out a saucepan, placing it on the stove. Aila attempted to turn the stove on, but for some reason it wouldn't light. After a few tries, she began to get frustrated. "Yuffie, your stupid stove is broken."

"Probably from lack of use," Leon said from his spot on the couch.

"What? No way, it's not broken," Yuffie protested. "You just gotta turn it up really high and let more gas out so it's more flammable…" Yuffie got up and made her way to the stove, turning the knob until the stove began clicking. "See? Just hold it like this for a minute or so."

"But Yuffie," Aila began, furrowing her brow, "if a lot of gas is escaping, when it finally does light won't it-"

In a flash of heat, the flame exploded to life on the stove, causing the three girls to yelp and jump away. "…do that?" Aila finished, blinking as the flames died down to a normal level. She could hear Cid laughing hysterically in the background.

"There you go!" Yuffie said with a grin, as if that was what was supposed to happen when you light the stove. "And you say I can't cook, ha!"

Aila narrowed her eyes, feeling slightly ticked that she'd almost been barbequed and that Yuffie seemed to see nothing wrong with that. "Yuffie, the stove is not supposed to explode when you light it!"

"It didn't explode! It's still there isn't it?"

The two continued to bicker while Aerith added the oil to the pan. The boys blinked, and Leon sighed.

"I'm starting to think this was a bad idea…" Sora said warily.

"Are you kidding?" Cid exclaimed with a laugh. "This is better than the TV!"

By some miracle, Aila and Aerith were able to avoid any more mishaps in the long abandoned kitchen (they'd banished Yuffie to the couch shortly after the stove lighting fiasco); Aila was even able to cut down on the cooking time, much to everyone's delight.

"Dinner is served!" Aerith announced as Sora set the last bowl on the table (he, Donald, and Goofy had generously volunteered to help serve and set the table).

"Finally!" Yuffie exclaimed, impatient as always. Everyone sat down, and Aila waited anxiously. She usually never cooked for anyone other than her family; it was kind of intimidating to be making a meal for such an important (in her mind at least) group of people.

"This is great!" Sora complimented as he greedily ate his soup, everyone else voicing their agreement. Aila and Aerith beamed at each other, and tried a spoonful themselves. Aila had to admit, they _had_ done a pretty good job, if she did say so herself. She idly wondered how long it had been since Sora, Donald, and Goofy had had a home cooked meal.

Aila found herself talking to the trio more than anyone else at the table. She asked them about their adventures, and they were happy to tell her all about them. It was fascinating to hear their stories first hand; hearing them describe how they defeated Maleficent and Jafar and Oogie Boogie with such detail had her gasping and laughing and cheering as if she'd never known any of it before. They were so easy to talk to, and Aila wondered if maybe it was because they were closer to her own age… well, Sora was at least. Donald and Goofy just acted like it. In fact, she couldn't remember when she'd been in such a good mood. It was as if just being around them lifted her spirits.

"So," Leon said as everyone was cleaning up. "Are you three staying here tonight, or do you have somewhere you need to be heading off to?"

Aila frowned. She didn't want them to leave yet.

Donald and Goofy looked at Sora, waiting to hear what he wanted to do. Sora thought for a minute. "Well… maybe we should rest here for the night. It's safer than spending the night on the ship, and we don't know what to expect in the next world. What do you guys think?"

"Ahyuk! That sounds like a great idea, Sora!" Goofy said.

"Sounds good to me," Donald agreed. Aila smiled.

"And I also was wondering if maybe you could take a look at the Gummi ship Cid? It got a little banged up…" Sora added.

"Sure, no problem kid. I'll look at it first thing in the mornin'." Cid said with a grin.

Leon nodded. "Great. Then you can help us with the night patrol."

Aila blinked. Leon was gonna make them work? Weren't they here to relax for a night?

"Aw man," Sora said with a sigh. Donald and Goofy sighed in resignation as well.

"Aila," Leon said, turning to face her, "you've got first shift."

"Aw, Leon!" Aila groaned. The first night shift was the longest. Sure, Aila was an insomniac, but generally her late nights consisted of relaxing or arguing with Yuffie, not fighting heartless. And besides, today had been a _long_ day; it had gone on for at _least_ three chapters now. Frankly, she was exhausted. Not to mention she just hated night shifts in general. Everything was creepier at night, and there were many more places for the Heartless to hide. Her slight fear of the dark didn't help much either. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, exasperated.

"Relax Aila. I know you've had a long day, so these three will be taking your shift with you," Leon said, gesturing to Sora, Donald, and Goofy.

"Hey, how come she gets help? It was her own fault she got lost and didn't get a break earlier," Yuffie complained.

Aila blanched, remembering her encounter with Axel and Demyx earlier. "That was so not my fault! You should have warned me about the Zero District!" Yuffie shrugged. Aila glared at her.

"Speaking of the Zero District, how about you guys start there," Leon suggested.

"'Kay," Aila said, yawning. She, Sora, Donald, and Goofy said goodnight to everyone and made their way out the door.

"So, where's the Zero District?" Sora asked.

"It's over here," Aila said with a smile. "Follow me." She yawned again as they walked.

"Gwarsh Aila, you sure seem tired," Goofy said.

"Yeah, today's been… interesting, to say the least," Aila replied, clasping her hands behind her back. As they passed by the Market Place, Aila got the strange feeling that she was being watched. She slowed for a second, scanning her surroundings. There was little light out, but it wasn't that hard for her to see. That was something she'd noticed since she'd arrived in Hollow Bastion; her night vision seemed to have improved. She thought that maybe in this game people had enhanced night vision so that they could see the Heartless in the shadows better. Of course, that was just her theory. But whatever the reason, she was grateful for this slight enhancement.

"Something wrong?" Sora asked, noticing her slight change in speed.

Aila continued to scan the buildings when, out of the corner of her eye, she saw it; the familiar color combination of a certain trio's hats. She smirked, careful not to fully look in that direction. "Nah, it's nothing," she said, returning to a normal walking speed. As they neared the building closest to them, Aila got ready. '3, 2, 1…'

"RAAAAAAAAARRGGHHH!"

Without so much as flinching, Aila took a quick step back and watched the triplets fall to the ground in front of her with a thud. She giggled. "Missed me."

"Aw man! We were so close!" Huey complained, sitting up on top of his brothers, both of whom still had swirly eyes.

"Boys?" Donald asked, taken aback. Aila turned to see that he, Sora, and Goofy had all taken out their weapons and jumped back into fighting stances. She was strangely proud of the fact that she was the only one not caught off guard.

"Oh, hiya Uncle Donald!" Huey exclaimed as Dewey and Louie pushed him off of them.

"Uh, what're you guys doin'?" Goofy asked, scratching his head.

"We were trying to scare Aila!" Louie exclaimed.

"Yeah, trying and failing," Aila said smugly.

"How'd you know it was us?" Dewey asked.

"I saw your hats," Aila said with a laugh.

Huey pouted. "Told you we should have worn disguises," he told his brothers.

"Wait, why were you trying to scare her?" Sora asked, still confused.

"Because it's fun!" they all replied in unison. Aila rolled her eyes.

"Boys," Donald scolded, "you be nice."

"Aw Uncle Donald, we're just having some fun," Louie said, rolling his eyes. "Right Aila?"

"Right," Aila said with a nod. "But, wait, were you guys just waiting here for me hoping I'd have first patrol?"

"No," Dewey laughed. "We were closing up and we saw you coming."

"Oh, okay. I was concerned for a second," Aila said.

"By the way," Huey said, turning to address Sora, Donald, and Goofy. "Do you guys need any supplies? We just got new stock in today."

"We'll even give you a family discount," Louie said, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Yeah, we'll stock up tomorrow morning before we leave," Sora said with a grin. "Thanks."

"No problem," Dewey said with a grin. "Well, we'd better get home. Bye Uncle Donald, bye guys!"

"We'll get you next time Aila!" Huey called as they ran away.

"If you say so!" Aila called after them. She turned to Donald. "Your nephews are funny."

"They're troublemakers," Donald grumbled, crossing his arms and glaring after them.

Aila smiled. "Come on, we'd better keep going if we don't want Leon to yell at us."

They continued to make their way to the Zero District, fighting off a few Heartless here and there as Aila continued to ask about their adventures.

"So wait, you beat a god?" Aila asked in mock surprise when Sora finished telling her about winning the Hercules Cup. "And Phil still wouldn't admit you guys were heroes?"

"Well, he's technically not a god yet," Sora said, placing his hands behind his head and shrugging nonchalantly. "But yeah."

"Showoff," Donald muttered. Sora scowled at him.

Aila laughed. "I don't think Phil realizes all the stuff you guys have done outside of his world. Maybe you guys should tell him? I bet he'd make you heroes if he knew all that!"

"But wouldn't that be muddling?" Goofy asked.

"_Meddling!_" Donald exclaimed exasperatedly. "And yes, it would be."

"But then how come you could tell me?" Aila asked, confused.

"Well, because since you're not from this world, you obviously know about other worlds already, right?" Sora said matter-of-factly.

'You have no idea,' Aila thought with a wry smile.

"So," Sora continued, "it's different, because it's not really new information to you. Phil doesn't really know, so we can't tell him."

Aila nodded, understanding. Since she was from another world… she then realized that she hadn't thought about her own world in a long time. She'd been trying to focus on what was going on in this world so that she wouldn't wonder about what had happened to her own. It hadn't really been destroyed… had it? Of course, a part of her was still convinced that she had just been in a horrible accident and this was all a super long coma-induced dream or something. Either way, it didn't look like she was getting home anytime soon. Her heart gave a painful thump and she shook her head, trying to rid herself of thoughts of her home.

"You okay?" Sora asked, slightly concerned.

Aila forced a smile. "Of course! I, uh, just thought I might have seen another Heartless over that way. Come on!" she lied, running ahead into the darkness of the Zero District. She heard the trio's footsteps behind her and reminded herself of what Donald had said when he'd first met Sora. No frowning. No sad faces. This group was all about being happy; she wasn't going to bring them down with her worries. She pushed all thoughts of her own world to the back of her mind just in time to be bombarded by a bunch of Heartless who'd been hiding in the shadows of the District's buildings. She groaned, remembering how during the day this District had been virtually empty. Damn night patrol.

KHKHKHKH

"Ugh," Aila groaned, collapsing against a nearby wall. The four of them had been battling Heartless and Nobodies (though mostly Heartless) for a few hours now, and she was about at her limit. Because it was nighttime, and because the moon was just a sliver tonight, there were many more Heartless roaming around. Aila had begun to realize that her fear of the dark might not be as irrational as she'd always thought it was; now that she was on a world where there were monsters literally born from the darkness, it seemed like a perfectly logical thing to be afraid of.

"Wow. There really are a lot of Heartless here, huh?" Sora asked as he caught his breath.

"Tell me about it," Aila said exasperatedly, closing her eyes and leaning her head back against the wall as she fought the urge to fall asleep right there in the middle of Zero District. The fact that they hadn't even managed to clear that District yet worried her; the Heartless population was really getting out of control.

"Do you think we got all of them?" Donald asked.

"Gwarsh, I hope so," Goofy replied. They both sounded worn out as well.

Aila opened her eyes and looked around wearily, scanning the area. "I think that's it," she said with a small smile. "Thank goodness. It's probably about time for Leon's shift to start anyways."

"Great," Sora said, holding out a hand and offering to help Aila up. "Let's head back then. I think we could all use some rest."

Aila nodded and took his hand with a smile, accepting his assistance. She wanted nothing more than to get back to Yuffie's as fast as possible so she could collapse into bed.

"How long has it been this bad?" Sora asked as they began heading back in the direction of Yuffie's house.

Aila sighed. "It's been getting worse and worse for the past few weeks. The Zero District is never usually this bad though, even at night."

"Where are they all coming from?" Donald asked, half to himself. Aila shrugged.

"They seem to be most concentrated around the castle, but we're not positive that that's where they're coming from; in fact, they seem to be heading _towards_ the castle a lot of the time, which is strange…"

"That is strange," Sora pondered. "Well, we'll try to help cut down their numbers as much a we can," he said with a grin.

Aila smiled in return. "Leon would really appreciate that. We all would."

"So how do you like it here, Aila?" Goofy asked.

Aila clasped her hands behind her back. "I really like everyone, and there's definitely never a dull moment… it's super tiring though…"

"You homesick?" Sora asked.

Aila sighed and nodded. "And… I'm worried… Leon says that my world was most likely destroyed, and that's how I ended up here… My family and friends… I have no idea what happened to them, or if anyone else made it…" Aila took a deep breath. The thought of her friends and family members being destroyed by the darkness, that she might never see any of them again… it was extremely painful. She had spent some time a few weeks ago trying to remember the last thing she'd said to each of them. She'd never even woken up to tell her brother goodbye before he'd left on his trip with his friends, she'd chosen to sleep in instead…

She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Sora smiling sadly at her, and she realized that they'd all stopped walking. She noticed that her vision was blurry and she blushed, quickly wiping the moisture from her eyes before it could spill over. She'd known she'd been homesick, but since she'd been trying not to think about it she hadn't really noticed quite how much she missed everyone.

"Don't worry, Aila," Sora said softly.

"Yeah, it'll be okay," Goofy assured with a small smile.

"If your world was destroyed, I'll fix it, okay?" Sora said.

Aila blinked. "Really? You think you could?" She remembered when she'd asked Leon if he thought Sora would be able to restore her world, how he'd seemed apprehensive about Sora's ability to do so for some reason.

"Of course!" Sora exclaimed with a grin. "I promise I'll fix it, okay?"

"Oh, no no, you have so much other stuff to be worrying about," Aila said worriedly. Giving Sora something else to deal with would _definitely_ mess with the game, which would probably be bad. If everything happened the way it was _supposed_ to happen, she knew everyone would be okay in the end. Who knew what would happen if she started messing up the timeline of events? She bit her bottom lip nervously. "Please, don't worry about any this, I shouldn't have brought it up…"

Sora shook his head. "We'll beat the Organization and fix this mess eventually. Even if I've got other stuff going on now, I'll be able to figure out what happened to your world at some point, and so I promise I'll fix it." Aila was about to protest again, but Sora continued before she got the chance. "I _want_ to fix it, okay? It's kind of my job after all," he said with a grin.

Donald nodded and gave a thumbs up. "Don't be sad, Aila. We'll take care of things."

Aila blinked. She'd known they were nice, both from what she knew of them from her world and what everyone in the Restoration Committee was constantly telling her, but this… Aila smiled, feeling moisture creeping into her eyes once again as she was overcome with gratitude for the trio. "Thank you."

"What are friends for?" Sora asked with a smile as he once again started walking towards Yuffie's place. Aila smiled as well and followed with Donald and Goofy, feeling touched by the fact that they considered her a friend.

When they finally reached Yuffie's, Leon was there waiting, ready to take over for them.

"So," he asked, waiting for a report.

"Too many," Aila said, growing more and more weary by the second.

"We were only just able to finish at the Zero District," Sora said, elaborating. Leon sighed tiredly.

"I see. Thanks for your help," he said to the trio. He then turned to Aila. "Get some rest. You've had a long day, and Cid wants your help with the Gummi ship in the morning. I told Yuffie to let you sleep a little longer tomorrow, so don't worry about her waking you up at the crack of dawn."

Aila smiled gratefully. "Thanks Leon." As she made her way towards the door, she heard Leon stop the others, saying he wanted to talk to them for a minute. Normally she'd be curious, but by now Aila was so tired that she really couldn't care less about what they had to discuss, and so, after confirming that she wasn't needed, she wished the four of them goodnight and headed groggily inside. She vaguely noticed that three sleeping bags had been set up by the couch as she made her way to her room, her tired mind barely registering the fact that that meant the trio was sleeping there before she pushed open her door, closed it softly behind her, and collapsed into bed. She was asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

KHKHKHKH

Okay! That's what I've got for now. Time to dive back into the story! I've actually been having some pretty serious health issues, so it looks like I'm going to have to withdraw from a lot of my classes this quarter… which SUCKS, but it also means I'll have a lot of time to devote to this!

So, yes. Let me know what you think! Reviews are always welcome, of course, even if they're just to tell me that I am a horribly slow writer who should stop procrastinating… *cough*

I'll try to get something more out real soon.

Thanks for reading!

~Faded


	9. Choices

Hi again everyone!

I know it's been a while… again… er… oops? Over a year, that's bad… BUT, as I promised, I WILL be finishing this story. As they say, slow and steady wins the race, right? …Right?

As a reward for waiting so long, I think you'll be happy to hear that **the actual plot of the story shows its face in this chapter** – hooray!

The reason this took me so long, for those of you who are still reading from the beginning, is partially because this chapter marks the beginning of the actual story and I wasn't entirely sure what to do with it, and partially because I started a job (which eventually turned into a wonderful career) literally a week or so after my last post. But I never forgot about this! I agonized over it for months. I knew where I wanted the story to eventually go, but I wasn't sure how to get it there. I have three different versions, and this is the one that seemed the most natural to me, in the way the characters act and react, the choices they make, etc. So, hopefully you all like it.

Errr anyway, I'll try to update more frequently. Your reviews have really helped me stay motivated – each time I got one I'd write a little more, so a huge thank you to everyone who reviewed!

With that, I'll shut up and let you get back to the story. I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or any of the Kingdom Hearts characters.

"_Alice came to a fork in the road. 'Which road do I take?' she asked._

_'Where do you want to go?' responded the Cheshire Cat._

_'I don't know,' Alice answered._

_'Then,' said the Cat, 'it doesn't matter." _

― _Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland_

**Chapter 9: Choices**

Aila awoke less than comfortably the next morning, the sun streaming over her face, her head and body aching from the strain of the day before. She squinted, pulling the covers up a little higher to try and block out the bothersome rays. Unfortunately, the small movement made her head throb sharply, her limbs begging her to stay still. She groaned lightly. 'Looks like I'm more worn out than I thought…'

No matter. She was pretty sure she had stashed a potion somewhere in her room recently… in her desk drawer maybe? Reluctantly she sat up, looking around the room groggily, her vision still blurred as her eyes adjusted to the morning light. At least Yuffie hadn't woken her up early, just like Leon had promised…

Promised…

"_I promise I'll fix it, okay?"_

"…AH! Oh no!" Aila gasped and attempted to jump out of bed, only to get tangled in the covers and fall to the concrete floor with a painful thud. "Ow…" she moaned, her already sore body screaming at her in protest.

After taking a moment to shake the stars out of her eyes, she looked toward the door worriedly. It was completely silent on the other side… she guessed that she was the only one home. They wouldn't have left already, would they have? She hadn't gotten the chance to say goodbye… the thought of the trio leaving made her heart sink a little, which surprised her. She'd only just met them after all, and she knew they'd be back eventually… but… she sighed. For once she wished that Yuffie _had_ given her a wake up call after all…

Getting slowly to her feet, she made her way over to her desk, digging around in the drawers until she found the hidden potion. She drank it quickly, feeling instantly better (though still weary), and made her way into the living room. As she'd suspected, no one else was there. Three sleeping bags were rolled neatly and placed on the couch (had the boys done that? Maybe Aerith had come by…), but other than that everything seemed just as it did every morning, minus the crazy ninja. If she hadn't known any better, she wouldn't have thought that the trio had even been there at all.

She headed to the bathroom and washed her face quickly, tying her long hair back into its usual ponytail when a thought struck her. Hadn't she been supposed to help Cid repair the Gummi ship? Well, she obviously hadn't done that yet, so…

"Maybe they're still here!" she exclaimed hopefully, grinning at her reflection. She dashed out of the little house, looking up at the sky to try and determine the time of day. She guessed it was around nine or ten… that was still pretty early, right? Well, maybe not for Yuffie or Leon, but for _normal_ people… and teenagers…

As she neared town, she wondered if she should go straight to the landing area or check in at the Burrow first. She decided to head to the landing area first, seeing as it was closer to her current location anyway. Something that had confused her when she'd played the game on her own world had been where Sora, Donald, and Goofy came from whenever they visited Hollow Bastion. To her, it had always seemed like they'd appeared out of thin air right in the middle of town (at least before they'd found any save points…). She had assumed that they always beamed down or something, but what if they'd wanted to land? To get some repairs?

As it turned out, the area where they had first "appeared" in the game was right in front of an indoor landing strip, which you needed a Restoration Committee Membership Card (or a certain kind of key…) to access. She liked the little area, as it was cool and peaceful (meaning there were no Heartless for her to fight off), but she had to admit, it was kind of cramped. She vaguely remembered seeing an area in the Castle when she used to play the game that seemed like it would be a great place to park ships! But of course, seeing as they didn't even have full access to the Castle yet, there was no way they were going to be able to utilize that room for quite some time…

Aila approached the door and scanned her card, the lock clicking open and allowing her access to the room. She closed the door behind her and made her way quickly down the staircase, her footsteps echoing against the concrete walls.

"Aila! Is that you?" she heard Cid call from below. She grinned.

"Yeah!" she called back, taking the last half of the stairs two at a time. The fact that Cid was there was a good sign. The room at the bottom of the stairs was small, with enough room for only about three ships at a time. At the moment, Donald and Goofy's Gummi ship was parked in the middle, tools scattered all around it, two smaller ships parked off to the side. She sighed with relief. They hadn't left yet.

"There you are," Cid said roughly, rolling himself out from under the ship. He had grease on his face from working on what she guessed was a leaky fuel valve on the underside of the ship.

"Sorry," Aila said, trying to catch her breath. "I slept in a little bit… but I'm ready to help now! What do you need?"

Cid sat up, taking a rag from his pocket and wiping the sweat from his face. He was silent for a moment, something that struck Aila as odd… Cid _always_ had _something_ to say, after all. He pulled the rag away and looked at her with a strange expression on his face… was it… sadness? Confusion? Aila couldn't tell…

"…Cid? Are you okay?" Aila asked after a few seconds, beginning to get concerned. Cid, seemingly startled out of some thought or another, cleared his throat and stretched.

"'Course I am," he said gruffly, his usual smirk returning to his face. "Now stop lolly gaggin' and get over here! We've gotta get this ship fixed up pronto!"

Aila nodded, still slightly confused, but deciding to just brush off the strange moment. "Right. Sorry. How can I help?"

Cid stood up and walked over to a few blueprints he had laid out on the work table, Aila following close behind. "Well, it looks like the ship's got pretty banged up, but nothing too serious. I replaced a fuel valve, and a few of the interior controls had to be fixed up. Mostly what's left now is replacing a few of the outer shield components that are beyond repair. I was thinkin' we could give the whole shield system an upgrade while we're at it, since we're going to have to strip off a large chunk of the old shield anyways. Ya think you're up for that, kid?"

Aila grinned. "Totally!" Repairing and building Gummi ships was like a puzzle; it was exciting getting each new piece to fit where it should, and the idea of doing a whole new shield upgrade really got her excited. She immediately grabbed a tool belt and slipped it on, checking to make sure it had all the essentials.

Cid smiled slightly. "Well alright then, let's get to it! But first…" Aila looked up just in time to see a yogurt hurling towards her face. She gasped and caught it, examining it questioningly. "I assume you haven't eaten yet," Cid said with a knowing smirk. Aila's stomach rumbled lightly in response, and she smiled sheepishly. "Eat that first, and then we'll get to work."

"'Kay," Aila said with a nod. Today was going to be a good day.

KHKHKHKH

"Okay, careful now, don't force it…"

Aila bit her lip and furrowed her brow, focusing intensely on placing the last gummi shield block on the ship. It had to go in just right, or else the entire shield system could fail. She and Cid had been working for a couple of hours now, taking apart the old shield system and brainstorming some new improvements as they worked. Part of what Aila liked about working with Cid was that he didn't work by the book. When they did repairs and upgrades, they tended to come up with new improvements for the systems as they worked, which just made the whole thing all the more fun. They tested their ideas before applying them to a working ship, of course, but nine times out of ten, everything worked out beautifully.

They had decided to add a double layered shield system, with one outer shield meant to deflect the majority of attacks, as well an inner backup shield in case of emergencies. That way, if any part of the outer shield should fail, the inner shield should have enough strength to keep the hull and engine protected. With this new system, the trio wouldn't have to worry as much about direct hits, and would be able to travel for a longer period of time without needing to stop in for repairs.

"Gently…" Cid said, helping Aila move the large block slowly into place. They held their breath as it fell into the slot, fitting perfectly. After a moment, the edges of the piece they'd placed began to glow, molding together with the pieces around it. As the light faded, all that was left was a smooth surface, indicating that the piece had indeed gone in correctly. Aila let out a sigh of accomplishment and grinned up at Cid.

"Aw yeah!" he cheered, giving her a high five. "Let's start this baby up and see how she purrs!"

"You got it!" Aila exclaimed happily, reveling in the adrenaline rush of finishing such a hard job. She grabbed the keys and pressed a button, starting up the ship's main functions from the outside. There was really no need to actually get on the ship and fully start it, as they were just going to test out the shields… and besides, she'd much rather be outside for this… "Shields are active!"

"Alright," Cid said with a nod, grabbing a screwdriver. "You ready?"

Aila grabbed a wrench and smirked. "Duh."

"3… 2… 1… TEST!" Cid shouted, and with that he and Aila threw their respective objects at the ship as hard as they could. The shields activated and deflected the tools with ease, much to Aila and Cid's delight, and they quickly grabbed anything else within reach and began chucking more random objects at the ship. The shield deflected everything they threw at it, from empty yogurt cups to spare gummi blocks to hammers and saws, until finally they were out of things to throw.

"It works!" Aila exclaimed triumphantly, pumping one of her fists in the air.

"Of course it works," Cid said smugly, though Aila could tell he was equally as excited. "Not too shabby, eh?" He clapped Aila on the shoulder. "I think that deserves some lunch."

Aila nodded in agreement, taking off her tool belt and brushing some stray strands of hair out of her face. "I wonder what everyone else has been up to…"

Cid shrugged. "Probably patrollin', as usual. Those damn Heartless just keep gettin' bolder and bolder…"

They turned off the ship and walked up the stairs, blinking as the doors opened, their eyes temporarily blinded by the outdoor light. Cid stretched. "I'm starving!" he complained as they headed toward the stores. "What do you want? Ramen?"

"Sure, that sounds fine," Aila said, clasping her hands behind her back as they walked. She had learned to enjoy what little down time she had in Hollow Bastion, since rest was a rare luxury for the Committee Members. Sitting down and eating ramen seemed like heaven to her. She briefly thought about how strange it was that less than two months ago her biggest responsibility had been getting all her homework finished before class started… that seemed like an entirely different life to her now. Her life had changed in such a short amount of time…

The two of them sat at the Ramen House bar and each ordered quite a large helping, talking excitedly about their successful repairs, their mouths watering with anticipation as their food was made. The owner, who of course knew them ("Well, if it isn't the Restoration Committee!"), struck up a brief conversation with them about how the repairs around town were going, and before they knew it their ramen was served, steamy and golden and delicious. They dug in happily, both of them doing nothing but inhaling their food for a few minutes, too hungry to focus on anything else.

"Ah, now that hits the spot," Cid sighed happily as he finished off his serving. The owner quickly refilled his bowl with more piping hot noodles, and Cid thanked him before starting in on his seconds with a little less vigor. After a few more moments, he cleared his throat. "So… Aila…"

Aila looked up at him with a mouthful of noodles. "Hm?"

"You like bein' on the Committee, don't ya?"

Aila blinked, swallowing her ridiculously large bite of food. "Yeah, of course I do."

Cid chewed thoughtfully, watching the people wandering around the marketplace. "It's a lot of hard work."

Aila stopped, another bite of noodles halfway to her mouth. "Well… I mean… yeah…"

Cid nodded. "Yeah. You are just a kid after all… I think sometimes we forget that… yeah…"

Aila stared at Cid. What was he talking about? "Huh?"

He looked back at Aila, that same look he'd had before in the landing area on his face once again. He shook his head. "Nothin'. Don't worry about it." He drank the last of the broth and placed the bowl on the counter, fishing around for some munny to give to the owner. "Let's get to the Burrow and check in, hm?"

"Er… yeah, okay," Aila said, eyeing him suspiciously. He wasn't telling her something. She stood up and followed him through the Marketplace, smiling at the people in the shops as she went. Hollow Bastion really was a nice little town. But she had to admit, she did miss the companionship of her friends… spending all of her time with adults was kind of tiring, especially when there was so much work to be done. She really did like being on the Committee though. She'd grown close to the Members, and she felt like she was really making a difference (even though the growing Heartless numbers were a little disheartening for all of them).

Cid was strangely quiet on the walk to the Burrow, and Aila couldn't help but feel more and more apprehensive. Something was definitely up… but what? Had she done something wrong? Maybe he was angry with her for sleeping late… or maybe…

Her breath caught in her throat. Had someone seen her with Axel and Demyx yesterday? She paled as she thought of what her fighting alongside two Organization members might have looked like to an onlooker. 'Oh no… oh no oh no oh no…'

She took a few deep breaths as they neared the Burrow, trying to stay calm. She'd just explain, that's all. She hadn't really done anything wrong… right? She hadn't told them anything or agreed to help them or…

'…But I saved them.'

She remembered the fight, which now seemed so long ago, and how she'd gone out of her way to stop them from being attacked by the Soldier Heartless. But she'd _had_ to, hadn't she? They were helping her, and if they'd gotten killed, then she might still be stuck in the Zero District for all she knew… but, also for all she knew, they could have been leading her into a trap… so why had she taken the risk?

"_Why are we bad? What did we do?"_

Demyx's question rang in her ears, and she realized that she still couldn't think of an answer to it. She shook her head, continuing to try and justify her own actions to herself as she walked. Cid looked back and raised an eyebrow at her. "You okay?" he asked. Aila jumped.

"Me? Yeah! Totally! I'm fine!" she said a little too quickly, rubbing the back of her neck. Cid gave her a skeptical look but didn't say anything, instead opting to face forward and watch where he was going. Aila sighed inwardly.

Cid opened the Burrow door and Aila followed tensely behind him, keeping her eyes on the floor and trying to stay calm. They'd understand. As long as she explained what happened, they'd listen… wouldn't they?

"Hello Aila." Aila looked up to see Aerith in front of her. Aila thought her smile looked a little tighter than usual. She gulped.

"Um… hi Aerith…" she responded quietly. Oh man, she was so in trouble now.

"Cid," Leon growled, eyeing the blonde.

"What? I didn't say nothin'!" Cid exclaimed defensively. Aila looked at the two men, getting more and more nervous by the second.

"Saying nothing is sometimes worse than saying anything at all…" Aerith said, clasping her hands behind her back. "You're not exactly the best at hiding your emotions, after all…"

"Well _excuse me_ for not being on board with this whole thing! It's a stupid idea anyways!" Cid shouted. Idea? Now Aila was getting confused. What were they talking about?

Leon sighed. "Cid," he said again sternly, in a way that made it clear that whatever they were talking about was not open for discussion. Cid crossed his arms in a huff and stomped over to the corner of the room, muttering about something or another.

Aila looked back and forth between the occupants of the room. "Um… what's… going on?" she asked, completely lost now.

Leon shook his head, indicating that now was not the time. Aila's heart fluttered nervously. 'I must be in more trouble than I thought…'

"There you are!"

Aila gasped as she was grabbed from behind, Yuffie having just ninja'd her way into the house. "Ah! Yuffie! Don't do that!" she protested, her already fluttering heart now going into overdrive. Yuffie just laughed, her eyes gleaming with their usual mischief.

"One of these days I'm going to get you so I can't sneak up on you! You'll see! It's training!" she sang happily. Yuffie seemed to be the only person acting normally… well, normal for Yuffie at least. Aila was getting more and more confused by the second.

"Great, everyone's here," Aerith said. Aila glanced over to the doorway to see Sora, Donald, and Goofy enter the house. They waved at her, and she lifted a hand nervously in response.

"Are we having a meeting?" Yuffie asked curiously. Cid snorted from the corner, muttering something incomprehensible, and Leon and Aerith exchanged a glance. Aila was beginning to panic. She wondered what they'd do to her if they thought she was a traitor. Was there a jail on Hollow Bastion? Maybe Sora would just attack her with the Keyblade… or maybe Merlin would give her some kind of potion to turn her into a lamp or something! The old wizard appeared from behind a bookcase at that very moment, and Aila unconsciously took a step back. They really were all here.

She suddenly felt quite trapped.

"Gwarsh, you don't look so good, Aila." She turned to see Goofy giving her a concerned look. She took a deep breath.

"What's going on." It was more of a statement than a question. Why wouldn't they just spit it out?

Leon caught her eye. "Aila. We have something we need to discuss with you."

'Oh God. Oh no. They _did_ see me! I knew it!' Aila's mind reeled with the thought as she tried to stay calm. "W… what's that?"

Leon kept her gaze, a very serious look on his face. "Aila. Sora, Donald, and Goofy have offered to let you travel with them for a while."

'What should I say! I didn't mean to! I'm sorry! I… wait… what?!'

Aila blinked. "…What?"

"WHAT?!"

Everyone jumped and looked at Yuffie, her mouth hanging open. Apparently Aila hadn't been the only one kept in the dark about this issue.

"Yuffie…" Leon warned.

"LEON!" Yuffie retaliated. "When did… who… why wasn't I told about this?!"

Leon stared at her. "Because we knew you'd overreact."

"OVERREACT?!" Yuffie exclaimed. She was suddenly up in his face. "You want to send my _student_ away and you don't want me to _overreact_?!"

"Yuffie…" Leon warned once again, a bit more sternly this time. As the two of them continued to squabble, Aila's brain began moving again. Had Leon really said what she'd thought he said?

"Aila? What are you thinking?" Aerith asked gently. Aila looked at her, a mixture of feelings rushing through her, confusion being the first and foremost.

"Do… do you guys not want me here?" she asked, completely unsure of what to make of all this. Her mind was still caught up in the idea that they were going to confront her about fraternizing with the enemy… was she being banished?

"Oh no! Of course we do!" Aerith said quickly, waving her hands in front of her. "That isn't it at all! We just feel that maybe… maybe it would do you some good to get away for a while."

Yuffie had now moved on to confronting Sora, who sweat dropped and held up his hands defensively as she questioned him. Aila wasn't really paying attention to what they were saying, her attention focused once again on Leon, who had moved to stand in front of her.

"Tell me, Aila. When's the last time you felt like you were having fun?" he asked. Aila blinked.

"Um… well I had fun repairing the ship this morning…"

"There! You see?!" Cid chimed in from his corner. "It's not like we're working her to death or anything! It's _fun_!"

Leon shot him a glare, and Cid quickly went back to muttering something or another. Leon looked back at Aila and sighed. "No Aila. I don't mean work fun. I mean just… just being a kid."

Aila paused. Now that she thought about it, she hadn't _really_ felt like a kid since she'd arrived in Hollow Bastion. The Committee had treated her as an adult pretty much since the beginning. She hadn't really noticed, but she hadn't done anything… well, kid-like in over a month. "I… I don't know…"

But then she did remember something.

"_You're on our side, Aila, you have to play too!"_

Her impromptu game of keep away with the trio _had _made her feel like a kid. In fact, it had been the most fun she'd had in a very long time. She glanced at the trio, all of whom were still being verbally attacked by Yuffie.

"I guess… I guess it was with them. When we were protecting the-" she paused, remembering that Leon wasn't supposed to know about the book yet. "…house. Protecting the house."

Leon nodded. "I thought so." Aila's eyes widened. Had he seen that fight? Maybe he was basing this theory on how they'd interacted at dinner last night… was that why he'd put them on the same patrol as her? To see if they could fight together as a team?

Leon sighed before continuing, choosing his words carefully. "Aila… You've done a great job here. And I know you don't mind helping out. But sometimes… sometimes we forget that you're still just a kid."

'Just a kid?' Aila thought with a scowl.

Leon smirked a little, reading her reaction. "Not that there's anything wrong with that."

"I'm afraid I also had a little something to do with this," Merlin said, drawing the attention of everyone in the room. "Aila, my dear. Your magic is progressing wonderfully. But there's only so much you can learn by staying in one spot. In order to keep growing, you need to go out and try something new, learn by doing and all that."

Aila was taken aback. This had _not_ been what she had been expecting. Not even a little bit.

"_Hey_! Merlin! You're not the only one teaching her! What about _me_?! She's still only a rookie in my book!" Yuffie protested.

"Don't you think it would be best for her to go out and learn a few things on her own?" Aerith asked.

"No," Cid and Yuffie replied simultaneously. Merlin chuckled.

"So," Leon said, looking Aila in the eye. "What do you think."

Aila looked over at the trio. Could she really go with them? Wouldn't that be… meddling? No, wait, Sora had said that it wasn't meddling to tell her about other worlds since she was _from_ another world, so this was the same as that…. Right? But, no, it would definitely be meddling in the game… then again, wasn't she already doing that by staying here? Anything she did at this point seemed like meddling, really, unless she sat in a corner and just watched everyone go about their lives in front of her. And getting to see some Disney worlds…

A sudden wave of excitement came over her at the thought. It was like a dream come true! Something every child on her world could only dream about! That excitement was quickly replaced by fear, however, as she remembered how many dangerous things there were on the other worlds. Here, the Heartless were a pretty constant enemy. Sure, new varieties showed up now and then, but overall her day to day battles were very consistent. If she traveled to other worlds… she remembered how many times she'd had to press the "Continue" button on the "Game Over" screen while she was playing the game at home, and she blanched. There was no "Continue" button here. If she screwed up… well… that was it. She'd probably just get in their way… like Yuffie said, she was still only a rookie, and Sora, Donald, and Goofy had already saved countless worlds on their own.

"I… I think I'd just get in the way…" she said unsurely.

"No way!" Sora said, crossing his hands behind his head. "We've seen you fight, remember? You can handle yourself."

"Ahyuck! The more the merrier!" Goofy agreed with a grin. Donald looked a bit more skeptical, but kept his beak shut. Aila opened her mouth, but couldn't think of anything to say. This was crazy! She couldn't go with them… could she? Something about it just didn't feel right. She'd already decided that she'd be staying here, on Hollow Bastion, and helping them prepare for the big war she knew was coming. They'd need all the help they could get here. Sure, they didn't realize it yet… and sure, she couldn't tell them that there was a war coming… but…

Leon pinched the bridge of his nose. "Aila. I don't want to have to _tell_ you to go. But…"

"Then don't!" Yuffie grabbed Aila's arm. "Come on, Aila. Let's go train. I've got lots to teach you today!"

_Aila!_

Aila froze. What was that? Suddenly, her sister's face flashed before her eyes. A memory. Her younger sister, laughing, sitting on her family's couch… her younger sister, whom she hadn't really thought about in so long, because she hadn't wanted to consider what could have happened to her… her younger sister, who could be on some random world, alone, wondering what had happened to her family…

It suddenly dawned on Aila that Leon was right. She couldn't stay here. Not anymore. If she wanted to find out what had happened to her family, to her home… she was going to have to go find some answers.

"I'll go." She said quietly.

Yuffie paused. "What?"

"I said I'll go."

Yuffie dropped Aila's arm immediately, as if she had been burned by it. "…Fine." A second later, she was gone, the door slamming behind her. Aila's heart sank.

Leon nodded, ignoring Yuffie's dramatic exit. "Good. Stock up on some things in town before you go."

Before she could even process what was happening, Sora was in front of her, holding out his hand. "Welcome to the team!" he said happily. Aila stared at his hand before slowly reaching out and shaking it with a small "thanks". The team? She was more like a tagalong… she felt like a stupid character from a bad fanfiction who'd squirmed her way into their ranks, much to the chagrin of the readers. This was not how this was supposed to go at all…

"Aila, do you have anything at the house that you need?" Aila looked up to see Aerith addressing her, and shook her head, not really hearing the question. "Okay. Then why don't you go into town and buy a few potions, hm?" Aila nodded dumbly, her brain still trying to process what was happening.

"We'll go with you," Sora offered. "We haven't had a chance to stock up yet either."

As the trio, and Aila, exited Merlin's House, Aila heard Cid finally lose control of his volume, but she didn't pay attention to what he was saying. She imagined he was upset that he was losing his Gummi assistant.

"Hey, you okay?" Sora asked as they walked. Aila jumped slightly, suddenly very aware of who she was walking with.

"Y-yeah, I'm just… a little blindsided I guess…"

"Yeah, sorry about that," Sora said, scratching his cheek and looking away. "Leon asked us about this last night, but he'd wanted to let you sleep before we told you…"

Aila raised an eyebrow. That was nice of him. She _had_ been extremely worn out last night… if he'd sprung this idea on her then, she probably would have been too tired to understand what he was saying. In fact, even now she was still having issues comprehending…

"Come on, hurry up," Donald grumbled, waddling ahead of the rest. He seemed a bit agitated, and Aila had a sneaking suspicion that he wasn't completely on board with this idea.

"Don't worry about him," Sora said quietly, apparently thinking the same thing Aila was. "He just doesn't like when things don't go his way." Aila frowned slightly but said nothing.

Huey spotted them coming up the stairs and waved. "Heya Uncle Donald! Heya Sora, Goofy, Aila!" The four returned the greeting and stopped in front of the store. "So, what can I get you fellas today?" he asked with a grin.

"Eight potions, four hi-potions, and ten ethers, please," Sora said, as if reciting from a grocery list. He obviously knew exactly how many his team needed in order for their journey to be successful. Suddenly, he glanced at Aila, seeming to remember that she was there. "Oh, wait…"

"That's okay, I'll get my own," Aila said quietly. She pulled out her own munny pouch. "Four potions and two hi-potions, please."

"No ethers?" Sora asked, raising an eyebrow. Aila blushed slightly.

"Um, no… I don't use magic that much…" She brushed a strand of hair away from her face, slightly embarrassed for some reason. Sora just smiled and turned back to Huey to receive his order, letting the subject drop.

"So, are you guys leaving now?" Huey asked as he gathered the items for them.

"Yup!" Goofy said happily. He clapped Aila on the shoulders. "And Aila's comin', too!"

Huey stopped dead in his tracks. "Wha—"

"No way!"

Aila and the trio looked up to see Dewey and Louie crouching on the roof, apparently having been spying on them the whole time.

"Boys?" Donald asked suspiciously.

"Aila, you can't go yet!" Louie complained, kneeling on the roof.

"Yeah! We haven't scared you yet!" Dewey chimed in. Donald crossed his wings and tapped his foot, obviously not approving of this whole scaring people game his nephews had grown fond of.

"We were so close!" Huey said, leaning on the counter. "Just stay a few more days and we'll get you for sure!"

Aila smiled slightly. "Sorry guys… but they're leaving today…"

The three ducklings groaned. "No fair!"

"Wait!" Louie said suddenly, straightening up. "This means that while you're gone, we'll have lots of time to plan the ultimate SUPER scare!"

Dewey straightened up as well, his eyes sparkling. "Ooh! I like that idea!"

Huey put his wing on his beak thoughtfully. "Hmm… that DOES seem like a good idea… Okay, Aila. You can go."

Aila blinked. Had he just given her permission to leave? "Um… thank you?"

"But when you come back, be ready to get scared beyond belief!" Dewey said excitedly.

"Yeah!" Louie agreed, his eyes twinkling mischievously as well. Donald sighed.

Aila giggled lightly. "Good luck with that. I'm telling you guys, you're not going to scare me… again."

Huey grinned. "We'll see about that." He handed Sora and Aila their purchases, tipping his hat. "Come back soon, ya hear? We get good business from you guys!"

"Thanks, we will!" Sora said happily. As the four of them turned to leave, he pulled an Ether out of his bag and held it out to Aila. "Here." Aila looked at him questioningly. "You should have at least one. You never know when it might come in handy."

Aila hesitated before taking the tiny bottle lightly in her hand. "…Thank you."

Sora grinned. "No problem!" Aila felt a little guilty taking one of his Ethers, but she figured she could just give it back to him when he needed it, since there was no way _she_ was going to be needing it anytime soon. Sora then divided up the remaining items amongst himself, Donald, and Goofy while Aila stuck her own in her pockets. She vaguely wondered if maybe she should pick up a bag before she left. It had never really dawned on her that she'd have to carry a lot of items while she battled, but now that she thought about it… something to hold them all in might come in handy.

While they boys stopped to get something to eat, she stopped at one of the other vendors, examining the bags and pouches for sale. She decided it would be safest to go with some kind of pouch, since a larger bag would probably only cause problems in a fight. She chose a small, plain, light blue pouch that she could tie securely to her belt. The vendor explained that it had an enchantment on it, making it so that the small, seemingly useless pouch could hold over ten times what it appeared to. She placed her seven items inside easily, noting that she had room for a couple other small things if the need arose.

The thought of other small items made her think of her communication device the Committee members had given her. She was _supposed_ to have it with her at all times, but she forgot it a lot, seeing as it was so small. In fact, she'd forgotten it this morning; she'd been too focused on making sure the trio hadn't left yet. While she highly doubted that it would work while she was on another world, it would probably come in handy when they came back for the big battle here…

Aila walked over to the trio, all of whom were still eating. "Hey, um…" she began. She suddenly felt very awkward. The three turned to look at her. "I remembered… I did forget something at Yuffie's house. Is it okay if I meet you back here in like… ten minutes? Maybe less… I'll be quick…"

Sora smiled. "Sure, no problem!"

Aila smiled back. "Okay. I'll be right back."

She turned and ran off in the direction of Yuffie's house, determined not to waste too much time. She didn't want to cause them to fall behind because of her already.

KHKHKHKHKH

Aila entered the house as quietly as possible. She was worried Yuffie might be home, and, judging by the way the young ninja had run out of Merlin's house, Aila guessed that Yuffie probably didn't want to see her right now. The house appeared to be empty, however, and Aila sighed. Part of her had been hoping it wouldn't be…

She shook her head and walked over to her own room. She felt a slight twang of guilt as she walked through the door, looking at the decoration job the Committee members had helped her with. It seemed like a waste now. With another sigh, she made her way to the dresser, picking up the small communication device she'd left on top of it and placing it gently in her new pouch.

"Something bothering you?"

Aila's eyes widened at the familiar voice, her heart sputtering in shock. She spun around quickly to face the speaker.

"Does your heart have to be so obnoxious every time I show up?" Axel sighed, leaning against the wall next to the door. Aila just stared at him, speechless. He was back _again_?

They were both silent for what felt like an eternity to Aila. Finally, Axel rolled his eyes and spoke. "I asked if something was bothering you because you sighed twice in the span of thirty seconds. Talk about annoying. But I see now that you're depressed because you've apparently lost the ability to speak. Which, I have to say, is kind of nice. For me, anyway."

Aila glared. "H-Hey!"

"Hm, guess I was wrong." Axel pushed himself off the wall and took a few steps toward her. "Let me try again." He continued moving closer to her, his steps slow and deliberate. "You're upset because the members of the 'Restoration Committee' – kind of a boring name for a club, by the way – are giving you the heave-ho. Not to mention that ninja chick ran out on you after you agreed to go along with their little spur of the moment decision." He leaned down, his face now right in front of Aila's. "Am I getting close?"

Aila backed away slightly, taken aback. "No, that's not… they didn't, I mean… how did you know that?"

Axel scoffed. "I told you last time, we were given orders to observe you. Did you think it was just for one day?"

Aila was shocked. Axel had been watching her this entire time? She realized that, although her previous encounter with the Nobody seemed so long ago, it had only been the day before, but still, two days of being watched… She suddenly felt very exposed. She backed into the dresser and scowled at Axel. "What do you want?"

Axel straightened up. "I just want to talk," he said nonchalantly.

Aila's glare intensified. "Yeah right."

Axel sighed. "Didn't we cover this last time? I thought we were friends."

Aila paused. Her last encounter with Axel and Demyx had been very confusing. They hadn't _seemed_ dangerous… yet Aila suspected that if she was caught talking idly to Axel in her room, it probably wouldn't be good – for either of them.

"I'm only trying to help," Axel said carefully, seeming to sense the girl's hesitation.

She bit her lip, becoming confused once again by Axel's apparent kindness. "What do you… what do you want to talk about?"

Axel walked over to Aila's bed and sat down, motioning for her to join him. Aila did not move from her spot by the dresser, however, still not sure what to make of the situation she suddenly found herself in.

Axel shrugged. "I noticed that you were upset."

Aila raised an eyebrow suspiciously. "While you were stalking me, right?"

"_Observing_," Axel corrected. "But yes."

"Why do you even care?" Aila asked, crossing her arms. "You don't even know me."

Axel smirked. "I might know more than you think I do, kid. And I'm guessing… that _maybe_ I'm not the only one feigning ignorance around here."

Aila's eyes widened. What in the world… Aila's heart beat faster as she began to panic. She remembered that Axel could hear her heart and focused on trying to keep it under control, having little success. Axel couldn't possibly know what he was insinuating he did… could he? "…What do you mean?"

Axel leaned back on the bed. "Let's just say I'm good at my job."

Aila narrowed her eyes. "And what is your job, exactly?" she asked, attempting to change the subject.

Axel wagged his finger at the girl in mock disapproval. "Ah ah ah, that's need to know, kid."

Aila huffed angrily and turned away. She didn't have time for this, not today. Sora, Donald, and Goofy were all waiting for her; she didn't want to keep them waiting. Well, most of her didn't want to keep her waiting… a small part of her welcomed this slight set back, as it took her mind off of the sudden turn of events that had taken place back at the Burrow. 'Quit being so selfish,' she scolded herself. 'You're keeping them waiting because you're scared to leave Hollow Bastion. That isn't fair to them.'

Aila shook her head, trying to rid herself of negative thoughts and focus instead on the positives. She was going to travel the worlds with possibly the _coolest_ group of explorers ever. It was going to be fun!

…Probably…

Deciding that she couldn't justify staying in her room talking to an enemy any longer, she marched swiftly toward the door, passing Axel in a huff. "Thanks for your concern, but I don't really have time for this right now. So, see you later. Or not. Just… _stop following me_, okay?"

"Observing," Axel corrected once again. Aila ignored him and continued toward the door. "Hold on," Axel said, grabbing Aila's shoulder. Aila gasped lightly, his hand cold even through her jacket. "You haven't heard my proposition."

Aila turned her head to look at him, suspicious. "…Proposition?"

Axel smirked at her repetition of the word. "Got it memorized?" he taunted.

Aila rolled her eyes. "Ha ha."

Axel continued to smirk. "Here's the thing," he began, his grip on Aila's shoulder tightening ever so slightly. "I don't think that going with Sora is the _best_ idea."

"That's not really your call," Aila said sternly.

"It's not really yours either, is it?" Axel said matter-of-factly, his grip tightening yet again. "Did anyone actually _ask_ you about this little turn of events?"

Aila was beginning to feel uncomfortable under Axel's grip on her shoulder. "It's not like they're trying to –"

"It's a yes or no question," Axel said sternly. Aila furrowed her brow. Where was he going with this?

"Well… no, but –"

"And do you actually _want_ to go with them?" Axel's grip was now becoming somewhat painful.

Aila bit her lip, starting to struggle a bit under Axel's grasp. "Maybe, I don't… don't know… Axel, you're hurting me…"

A confused look crossed Axel's face. He loosened his grip slightly, but did not let go. "…Sorry. I forgot how fragile Somebodies are."

Aila was feeling very uneasy now. "Axel… what exactly are you trying to do here?"

Axel frowned. "I'm giving you a _choice_, unlike your so-called friends…"

Aila blinked. "…A choice to do what?"

"Oh come _on_!" a new voice shouted, causing Aila to jump. A portal of darkness appeared on the other side of the room, and another Organization member stepped out of it. "This is taking _way_ too long," he drawled with his surfer-dude air. "Sorry Axel, but now we do this my way."

Aila recognized the man's voice. Xigbar. Unlike Axel and Demyx, Aila suspected that Xigbar wasn't going to be so friendly. The Nobody lowered his hood, revealing his scarred face as he looked Aila straight in the eye, a slight smirk pulling at his lips.

"Back off, Xig. I have everything under control," Axel said, clearly annoyed by the intrusion.

Xigbar scoffed. "As if! She's still totally going to go with them, dude. You haven't done anything but waste everyone's time."

Axel sighed. "Maybe if I hadn't been _interrupted_…"

Aila looked to Axel. "I don't understand… Do you want me to stay here?"

"Not exactly…" Xigbar said. He tapped his finger on his nose, indicating that the answer was right in front of her.

Aila was confused. If he didn't want her to go with Sora, and he didn't want her to stay, then what…

Her eyes widened. The words formed slowly in her mouth as her mind put two and two together. "You… want me to go with _you_…"

"Bingo!" Xigbar shouted. Aila's heart started beating like crazy once again. This time she didn't bother trying to slow it down.

This was bad.

_Very_ bad.

"What if…" Aila began, her mouth suddenly very dry. "What if I say no…?"

Xigbar laughed sharply. "Ha! You actually believe you have a say in this?"

"Xigbar…" Axel warned.

"What?" Xigbar asked, clearly getting frustrated.

"That's not how we planned to do this."

"We tried your plan, Axel, even though I _told _the Boss it wouldn't work. And what do you know! Acting all friendly and crap _didn't work_."

Aila's eyes darted to Axel. "Acting…? So you _were_ pretending! This whole time you were – !" she cried accusingly.

"Whoa, now hold on –" Axel began, but Aila was having no part of it. In a flash she'd ducked out of Axel's grasp and was on the run, out of the bedroom and out the front door.

She reached into her pouch and quickly grabbed her communicator, jamming it into her ear. "Hello?!" she shouted, pressing down on the device. "Leon! Cid! Is anyone there?!"

"Aila?" She heard Leon's voice in her ear. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"The Organization – at Yuffie's house – ah!" Aila gasped as Xigbar suddenly appeared in front of her, his speed far surpassing hers.

"Not so fast," Xigbar said, grabbing her arm.

"Aila? Who is that?" Leon now sounded extremely concerned. "We're heading your way – get out of there!"

Aila summoned her weapon and swung at the Nobody in front of her, causing him to release her and jump back to avoid it. She took advantage of the opening and ran in the direction of the Burrow, hoping to meet up with the others halfway there. She knew there was no way she would be able to win against Xigbar and Axel on her own. Her best bet was going to be to find the others as soon as possible and team up with them.

Unfortunately, Xigbar had a different idea in mind.

"Hold on, girly," Xigbar sneered, grabbing Aila's ponytail from behind and throwing her into a nearby wall. She let out a yelp, only to have Xigbar's gloved hand placed over her mouth. His other hand grabbed her wrists and held them in front of her, causing her to drop her weapon with a loud _clang_. "Shhh sh sh sh," he whispered, pressing her into the wall. "Fighting only makes this whole process more annoying for everyone. Not that I don't like a good fight, don't get me wrong, but the chase…"

"Xigbar."

Aila looked over Xigbar's shoulder to see Axel, his hood up once again. His arms were crossed, his stance seeming to be one of disapproval.

"This isn't helping anyone."

Xigbar scoffed. "Look man, the Boss said to bring her back with us, so I'm bringing her back!"

Axel pinched the bridge of his nose exasperatedly. "Yes, but all of this is useless if she doesn't _trust us_."

"Trust, schmust!" Xigbar shouted, clearly annoyed. "Just because she doesn't '_trust us_' doesn't mean we won't get what we want. Seriously man, sometimes I feel like you might be going soft! Now get over here and help me make a portal!"

Aila struggled against Xigbar's grasp, knowing that if they made a portal, she'd be in _huge_ trouble. This only caused Xigbar's grip to tighten.

"Come on, man, my hands are kind of full here!" he shouted to Axel through clenched teeth. For a moment, Aila thought Axel wasn't going to do it. She looked at him desperately, hoping beyond hope that he wouldn't. They locked eyes for a few seconds, and…

…He raised his hand to create the portal.

Aila struggled even harder, desperate to get away from Xigbar's cold steal grip. His hands were like a vice, and he had her entire body pinned against the wall behind her.

She was, quite effectively, trapped.

"AILA!"

Aila, Xigbar, and Axel all looked to see Leon running toward them, followed closely by Sora, Donald, and Goofy. He must have been with them when he'd gotten Aila's call.

"Crap," Xigbar said with a grimace. It was clear that he wasn't ecstatic about the idea of fighting the four boys, at least not yet.

Axel facepalmed behind him. "Well this just keeps getting better…"

Xigbar turned to Axel. "Come on man, just make the portal and let's get out of here!"

Aila tried to protest, her words muffled by Xigbar's cold hand over her mouth. The others were almost in range to attack. If she could just hold Axel off from creating the portal for a few more seconds…

Too late.

A cold chill ran up her spine as the wall behind her gave way. She could see the edges of tendrils of darkness flowing around her, and she felt herself, no longer supported by the wall, falling back into the darkness.

Xigbar let go of Aila as she fell through the portal. She stumbled onto the other side, Axel following close behind.

"Sorry boys, maybe next time!" she heard Xigbar shout from the other side. He sounded far away, muffled by the dark portal. She thought she heard her name being called by someone, but the voice was too muffled for her to be able to distinguish the speaker. Xigbar was through the portal a second later, the dark, slimy looking black spot fading away. Before Aila knew it, it was gone.

It was just her, Axel, Xigbar, and what seemed like an infinite space filled with absolutely nothing.

This was very bad indeed.

Aila was frozen for a few seconds, her mind having trouble processing what had just happened. This morning everything had seemed so normal, and then, in the matter of half an hour or so, everything had just… unraveled. She felt blindsided by the whole ordeal.

She could feel herself starting to panic, her breathing getting tighter as her eyes darted back and fourth, taking in the vast expanse of nothingness that was the Realm of Darkness. Axel and Xigbar seemed to be arguing about something, but for some reason she was having trouble making out their words.

"…_if you had just… patient…"_

"…_big deal?! We got her, didn't…"_

Why did they sound so far away? Aila's breathing continued to become more and more labored, her vision beginning to blur. She shook her head, which only caused her vision to spin even more. Was she really in that much shock? 'Pull yourself together, Aila!' she thought desperately. Her legs gave out and she fell to her knees, coughing, beginning to gasp for air.

In a flash, Axel was in front of her. He seemed to be asking what was wrong. She tried to respond, but her lungs felt like they were quickly turning into cement, and it was all she could do to keep trying to take a breath. Aila's eyes widened as she realized that this wasn't just shock.

Something was very wrong.

She thought she heard Axel say something else, and suddenly she was off the ground, somehow moving forward. For a moment she thought she was flying, only to realize that she was in Axel's arms as he ran toward… well, nothing, since there seemed to be nothing in this Realm to run to.

A ways in front of them, a black spot appeared, and Aila vaguely processed that it was another portal. Before she had time to contemplate where they might be going, her eyes began to close; she suddenly felt very tired. She struggled briefly to stay awake, but sleep was just so enticing…

She was pulled into unconsciousness moments before they passed through the portal, strange, blurred images flashing through her mind…

_A white wolf, howling at the moon._

_FLASH._

_A group of young men and women sitting around a fire, laughing._

_FLASH._

_A child crying on a fractured floor._

_FLASH._

_A boy and a girl, seeming to be in their mid-teens, stand across from each other, two silhouettes in the darkness. It's a cloudy night, the air damp and still, and laced with the electric feel of danger._

_The boy speaks._

"_This world is beyond hope. All the worlds are. These mortals… it's only a matter of time before they destroy themselves. You know it's true." The girl doesn't respond. "I know you've witnessed the Evil in these worlds."_

"_I've also witnessed plenty of Good."_

"_It hardly matters. The Good does not balance out the Evil. Not anymore."_

"_That's why we're here!" The girl cries exasperatedly. "If the worlds are unbalanced, then it's because we have failed. You can't just expect to… to start over every time they fall out of balance! If we just work together, we could regain—"_

"_It's too far gone," The boy hisses back. "We did what we could, but nothing can fix the damage that has already been done. It's too late."_

"_I can't believe that." _

"_Then you're a fool."_

_Silence. They stare at each other for a long while, hardly breathing, their eyes flashing dangerously._

_Finally, the girl speaks to the boy once more. "Cyrus. I'm going to ask you one last time. Please… do not go through with this."_

_The boy stares for another moment. Without a word he turns away, walking back into the shadows, his silhouette vanishing into the darkness. The girl bows her head sadly. The decision had been made. There was only one option left._

"_So be it."_

KHKHKHKHKH

Heh, I bet I worried some of you with that whole Aila's-joining-the-gang thing, didn't I? Or maybe you were cheering for it – who knows.

What I do know is that things are _finally_ moving forward! I'm already writing the next chapter, and things seem to be flowing much more easily now that I've figured out how to get from Point A to Point B.

Anyway, I'm sorry this took me over a year to post! I would like to finish this up sooner rather than later, so we'll see what happens.

Again, reviews really help me stay motivated, so if you'd like to read more, please review!

Thanks for reading~!

~FP


	10. Asleep

_**IMPORTANT NOTE! HEY! READ ME! **_Aila has ONLY PLAYED three Kingdom Hearts games, and therefore her knowledge of this universe derives solely from the following: **Kingdom Hearts I, Kingdom Hearts II, and Chain of Memories**. I myself have only played those three and Dream Drop Distance (though I have done extensive research on the other two games in an attempt to stay consistent with this story), so I apologize if my knowledge of the Organization's base isn't complete… I tried to research 358/2 Days to make sure, but I ended up just kinda making up things as I went along… just… go with it…

See? _See? _I told you it wouldn't take as long as last time for me to update! Granted, I didn't finish this as quickly as I'd wanted to… but I'm easing into it.

Also, the plot shows its face in this chapter (gasp!), so don't be fooled by all the talking. There will be more action soon, I promise.

Enjoy!

* * *

_"If you're confused about what to do,_

_it's a sign that your enemy is winning."_

_― Toba Beta, Master of Stupidity_

* * *

**Chapter 10: Asleep**

"What happened?"

Axel sighed. "It seems to be some sort of bad reaction to the Realm…"

"Bad reaction?" A hooded figure stood in front of the redhead, facing away from him, looking up at the sky. A large, half-formed, heart-shaped moon hung far above him, hearts trickling up to it from various worlds.

"I guess, yeah." Axel crossed his arms. "You don't seem that surprised."

The continued to watch the moon, a hint of a smile in his voice. "Do I not?" Axel didn't respond. "We will proceed as planned, as soon as the girl awakens."

Axel ran his hand over his face. "That might be a few days… she's pretty out of it."

"No matter," responded the hooded man. "We have time." Finally, he turned to face Axel, his orange eyes gleaming in the moonlight. "Will she cooperate?"

"Well…" Axel chose his words carefully. "It won't be as easy as we'd hoped. Any trust I'd formed with her has, unfortunately, been broken due to the… circumstances of her capture."

Xemnas' eyes narrowed. "I see." He turned around once again. "And what do you have so say about that, Number II?"

Xigbar, who had been keeping his mouth shut behind Axel this whole time, stepped forward reluctantly.

"Axel's plan wasn't working," he said defensively. "I did what I had to in order to get her here."

"You went off script," Xemnas said dangerously. "And that… is going to cost us."

Xigbar scowled. "What were we supposed to do? Just let her go with Sora?"

Xemnas turned to face him. "Perhaps. As long as the seeds were planted… we would have brought her to our side eventually. She would have begun to question Sora's mission, and Numbers VIII and IX would have continued to gain her trust, to confuse her to the point where she came to us willingly. That would have made this process much, _much_ simpler, in the long run." Xemnas smiled. "Of course, allowing her to go with Sora would have also been a risk… If she'd discovered the truth before we got ahold of her…"

Xigbar perked up. "So… it's good that she's here then. Right?" Axel rolled his eyes.

"In a way." Xemnas turned away one last time. "But do not disobey orders again. Next time, I will not be so forgiving."

With that, they were dismissed. Axel and Xigbar hastily began making their way down the stairs. Saïx, who had been overseeing the meeting, gave them both stern looks as they passed, but said nothing. There was no need to expand on Xemnas's lecture.

Xigbar ran his hand over his face exasperatedly. "Way to stand up for me, _Lea_."

Axel scoffed. "And why would I have done that? It's your fault we're in this mess in the first place."

"My fault?!"

"If you had just stayed out of it—"

"Look, _dude_," Xigbar growled. He stopped walked and watched Axel continue down the stairs. "I don't know what your view of the situation was, but from where I was standing, you were about to lose her. And you heard the Boss, that would have been a risk!"

"It would have been preferable to her dying," Axel shot back, not stopping his descent.

Xigbar groaned. "She didn't die! She's _fine_!"

"She could have…" Axel slowed to a stop and turned to look up at Xigbar.

"As if! And besides, who cares?!" Xigbar shouted. "We don't _need her_, man! She's just a bonus. She's _expendable_." He scoffed down at the redhead. "How are you not getting that?"

Axel just shook his head and continued down the stairs. "Whatever."

"Just focus on the mission, man!" Xigbar called after him. Axel didn't respond.

As he reached the bottom of the stairs, he turned down a hallway, walking in silence for a few minutes. He made a few more turns and eventually ended up at a door. Opening it, he walked in, being careful not to make a sound. There was a bed against the opposite wall, with Aila fast asleep between the covers. Axel nodded to Luxord, who was sitting in a chair in the corner examining his playing cards.

"Your shift?" Luxord asked. Axel just nodded in response. Luxord got up, stretched, and left the room, mumbling something about being bored.

The door closed, and Axel was left alone with the girl. He quietly made his way to her bedside, looking down at her curiously.

"Just why exactly is the Boss so interested in you, of all people…?" he asked quietly. Aila, of course, did not respond.

Axel frowned down at her.

"What are you hiding?"

KHKHKHKHKH

The next few days were seen in semi-conscious flashes to Aila. She heard snippets of conversations, men talking about bad reactions and deep sleeps, and every once in a while she would see, through tired eyes, the white room in which she now resided.

On day three, she felt strong enough to fully open her eyes, only to see Demyx sitting next to her on the bed.

"You're awake!" he exclaimed, his volume making Aila's head throb sharply. She moaned lightly in protest.

Demyx just smiled. "Here, come on."

He gently helped her into a sitting position, leaning her against the wall adjacent to the little bed. "You should drink this," he said, holding out a glass filled with some sort of clear liquid. Aila eyed it suspiciously, and Demyx just chuckled. "It's only water, promise."

Aila hesitantly took the glass, still suspicious, but almost immediately realized how thirsty she was. She took a small sip. It tasted like normal water, and that was good enough for her; she was too groggy to investigate any further. She downed the rest of the liquid quickly, wanting more. Fortunately, Demyx was prepared, and held out another full glass to her. She traded him the empty glass and drank from the full one, a little slower this time. She eyed him as she drank, trying to size up the situation she found herself in.

After a moment, she removed the glass from her lips, looking the Nobody straight in the eye. "What happened?" she asked quietly, her voice hoarse from lack of use.

Demyx smiled softly. "It looks like you reacted badly to the portal."

Aila was confused. That had never happened to anyone in the game, had it? "…Why?"

Demyx put a finger to his chin. "I'm actually not sure… I've heard whispers though, so I think the Boss might have an idea."

Aila's eyes widened at Demyx's mention of "the Boss". She knew who that was, of course, and she was not eager to meet him any time soon. She looked at the Nobody before her. "Demyx… please… take me back."

Demyx looked a little unsettled, and looked away. "I'm sorry Aila… but I can't do that…" Aila's heart sank. Demyx looked up, smiling once again. "But you'll like it here! It'll be fun, you'll see!"

Aila suddenly felt very tired once again, nearly dropping her almost empty glass of water, which Demyx caught easily. "Here, why don't you sleep a little longer, and we'll talk more when you wake up, okay?" he said gently, coaxing her back into lying down. Aila felt an urge to protest, but her body did not agree in the least bit, and before she knew it she was fast asleep once again.

KHKHKHKH

Day five was when Aila next awoke, feeling significantly stronger than she had during her previous visit to conscious land. Demyx was not there this time, and she slowly pushed herself up, taking in her all-white surroundings. There was a small window next to her bed, and through it she could see the ominous-looking half-formed heart-shaped moon in the sky above, confirming her location: The World That Never Was.

Aila's head spun as that realization fully hit her, and she suddenly felt sick. Why, _why_ hadn't she just stayed with Sora, Donald, and Goofy in the Market Place? Why hadn't they left just a few minutes earlier? How on earth had this happened?

Aila put her head in her hands, defeated. What she wouldn't give to be home, _really_ home, just worrying about homework and school and other average things. How had she ended up in the middle of all this?

"You're not giving up already, are you?"

Aila turned to see Axel, sitting on a chair in one of the corners behind her, watching her carefully. She wasn't as shocked as usual – he'd done the whole hiding-in-the-background thing to her enough times that she was starting to get used to it.

The Nobody slowly got to his feet, making his way over to the girl. He said nothing else, no snarky comments, which Aila thought was weird. She instinctively leaned slightly away from him as he neared her. He sat on the edge of her bed, where Demyx had sat previously, facing away from her. After a moment, he sighed. "How are you feeling?" he asked, sounding somewhat uncomfortable.

"Better," Aila answered carefully, not taking her eyes off of him. There was silence for a few minutes, she watching him, he watching the wall. At last, Aila spoke once again. "…Why did you make the portal?"

Axel put a hand to his neck, cracking it uncomfortably. "I didn't really have a choice."

Aila took a deep breath, realizing that she was indeed able to breathe normally again. "If you had just waited for Leon and them to get closer, they could have – "

"They could have what? Saved you?" Axel ran a hand through his hair. He was clearly struggling to keep his cool demeanor. "Why in the worlds would we have wanted them to do that?"

"That's what a friend would have done."

Axel finally turned to face her, his expression guarded.

"That's what you kept telling me you were, remember? A friend…" Aila was beginning to get angry. "You really were just pretending the whole time, weren't you? Just like Xigbar said…" Aila caught herself, realizing she shouldn't be so confident with people's names. "That was what you called him, wasn't it?"

Axel sighed. "Look, kid… I'm sorry, okay? When Xig showed up, I was kind of out of options…" He was silent once again. After a few seconds, he stood up, putting his hands in his pockets, his usual cocky demeanor returning. "Besides, you should really be thanking me. You'd be a goner if I hadn't been there."

Aila vaguely remembered being carried by Axel after she'd collapsed. She was about to fire back that she wouldn't have needed his help if he hadn't made the portal in the first place when she remembered the strange dreams she'd had when she'd first fallen asleep. The wolf, the people by the fire, the child, the conversation between the boy and the girl…

"Who were those people…?" Aila mumbled aloud to herself. Axel turned around, confused.

"What?"

"They were talking about… the worlds or… something…" The details of the dreams were already very vague in her memory after such a long sleep, and what remained of them was rapidly slipping away from her. She frowned, unable to remember anything else.

Axel furrowed his brow. "I think you're still out of it, kid." Aila looked up at him, having almost forgotten he was there. "Anyway, now that you're up, we'd better get going."

Aila blinked. "Going?"

Axel just shook his head, seeming a little reluctant. "Come on, follow me." He made his way to the door, turning around to wait for her.

Aila, who hadn't stood up in a good five days now, carefully got to her feet, realizing that she still felt quite worn out despite all her rest. After testing her balance, she gingerly followed Axel to the door. He opened it and began to lead her down the hallway, making many different turns along the way. Aila was sure she'd get lost if she ever tried to find her way on her own; probably an anti-escape method thought up by the Organization.

"So um… where are we going?" Aila asked, looking at the grey, linear patterns on the walls, floors, and ceilings.

"To a meeting."

Aila was confused. "What kind of meeting?"

Axel looked back at her. "The Boss wants to meet you." Aila blanched. He was taking her to Xemnas?! "Calm down," Axel said, perhaps hearing her heart speed up once again. "You'll be fine. Just… don't do anything stupid."

Before she had time to wonder what kind of stupid things she should specifically avoid doing, she could hear voices echoing in what sounded like a large room up ahead.

"Progress is slow," one voice said. Aila thought she recognized it as Xaldin's. "The Beast is giving in to my persuasion, but that girl… She's too curious for her own good."

"And Sora? He's arrived now as well?" This was Xemnas, Aila could tell, and she shuddered involuntarily.

"Yes," Xaldin said, clearly annoyed. "He's already interfering."

"As long as he keeps attacking the Heartless, we need not be concerned about what else he interferes with." Saïx. Aila's heart sped up even more.

"We need the Beast to turn!" Xaldin fired back.

"Let Sora believe he's succeeded, for now," Xemnas said calmly. "You can return to your mission once he's left that world and moved onto the next."

Axel and Aila were now at a large doorway, the voices of the Organization members clearly coming from the room on the other side. Axel gave her a look, a warning of sorts. Aila's heart began sputtering out of control, pounding loudly in her chest.

"Ah," Xemnas said. "I believe… we have a visitor." Aila jumped. How could he tell?! Axel rolled his eyes and tapped his chest, indicating that Xemnas could hear her heart. Aila took a deep breath, trying to calm herself.

"Come in, Number VIII."

Axel put his hand on Aila's shoulder and gently pushed her into the room, following closely behind her. Aila looked up as she entered to see high, white chairs all in a circle around the room, with various Organization members sitting in them. She saw Demyx in one of the chairs, and he waved down to her, a happy smile on his face. Aila just gulped and looked up at the center chair, her blue eyes locking with orange ones as Xemnas looked down at her. She quickly looked away, her old habit of avoiding eye contact clicking in involuntarily.

"Hello, Aila," Xemnas said politely. "I trust you're feeling better?"

Aila looked to Axel, unsure if she should answer. He gave a short nod, which she took to mean that she should. "Um… I am."

Xemnas smiled. "That is good to hear. I apologize for your less than sophisticated journey here." He shot Xigbar a look. Xigbar crossed his arms with a huff. "I do hope that you won't hold it against us."

Aila was extremely on guard. Axel and Demyx may have been able to make her question their characters, but Xemnas… she knew he meant bad news.

"Wh… what do you want with me?" she asked, less confidently than she would have liked to.

"Ah, straight to business then," Xemnas said with a slight chuckle. "As you wish. First, let me introduce you, our esteemed guest, to the members of our Organization." He gestured with his arms, indicating that he was now addressing the entire room. "Friends, please welcome Aila, a child of the Light. I trust you will all make her feel welcome during her stay here." The other members murmured to each other, all looking down at the girl.

Aila was confused. How long was she expected to stay here, exactly? Xemnas didn't seem to be speaking to her like she was a prisoner, but she knew that she must be. Why else would they bring her here? What did they want with her anyway?

"Now then," Xemnas continued, once again looking down at the girl. "Tell me, child. Do you know why you're here?"

"N-no… I don't." Aila felt very awkward. She could feel everyone's eyes on her, and it was making her feel very vulnerable.

Xemnas smiled. "I assure you, our intentions are not as sinister as you may have been led to believe." He straightened up, the shadows crossing his face in what Aila thought looked _highly_ sinister, despite his previous statement. "We would like to welcome you here as a friend, not as an enemy. Though we may come from two different sides of the same coin, I do hope that you will not hold that against us."

Aila was confused. What was happening here? Was _Xemnas_, one of the biggest villains in the Kingdom Hearts universe, _really_ trying to befriend her? Maybe she was still dreaming…

"As such," Xemnas continued, "I would like to invite you to have free reign of the castle, as well as the surrounding area, if you so please. However, I must unfortunately limit your travel from this world for the time being. We wouldn't want you to have another… close call."

Behind the friendliness of his words, Aila could sense a slight smugness, no doubt because he knew that she would be unable to protest to this significant limitation of her freedom. He had a point, unfortunately; if she was unable to travel through Portals of Darkness, then she was definitely trapped, no matter how much "freedom" they appeared to be giving her.

"I understand," Aila said stiffly, and she did. She would not be leaving this place anytime soon.

Xemnas smiled once again. "Very good. I trust you will not disappoint. We are done here."

Disappoint…?

With that, Axel grabbed Aila's arm and pulled her out of the room, the other Members disappearing into Portals of Darkness.

"Axel, what did he—" Aila began.

"Just keep moving, kid," Axel said quietly, continuing to lead her down the hall once again. Eventually, they ended up at another door. They entered, and Aila was taken aback. It seemed to resemble… a kitchen?

"Sit," Axel said, gesturing to a chair around a small, white table. Aila did so, too confused to argue. "You're probably hungry, right?"

Aila raised an eyebrow. Hungry? Well, now that he mentioned it… Her stomach gave a loud rumble.

Axel rolled his eyes. "I'll take that as a yes."

He grabbed a glass of water and a bag of bread and brought it over to her, not bothering to prepare anything further. "Eat up."

Aila looked from the bread to Axel and back again. Axel sighed. "Look, if you don't want it…" He reached for the bag, but Aila grabbed it before he could, tearing it open and taking a slice. She was apparently hungrier than she'd thought. Not eating for almost a week could do that to a girl.

Axel smirked. "So," he began, sitting down at the table as well. "You still freaked out?"

Aila shot him a look, not justifying his question with an answer. She quickly ate her bread, trying to process everything that had happened. Of _course_ she was freaked out. She was in the enemy's base, after having been taken quite unceremoniously from the company of her friends. She had never actually expected to come face to face with Xemnas, let alone all of the other Organization members, and surely not after so little time out of her own world.

"Okay, here's the deal," Axel said, suddenly very serious, his voice hushed. Aila continued to munch on her bread, watching him carefully. "You're not in any immediate danger, but you need to be smart." Aila was confused, though this was quickly becoming her staple emotion of the day, so she was beginning to get used to it. "Some of these guys aren't as easygoing as I am." Aila scoffed, but Axel ignored her. "When you're talking to them, you're going to have to watch what you say, and –"

Aila swallowed. "Why would I talk to any of them?" she spat indignantly.

Axel gave her a look. "What, you're just going to be silent from now on? Well, actually, I don't really mind that idea…"

Aila scowled. "No, but… I'm not interested in talking to anyone unless we're discussing taking me back to Hollow Bastion."

"Look, someone's going to try to talk to you at some point, and if you just sit there silently whoever it is might lose their temper," Axel said. "Just… I don't know, make small talk or… something. It'll make life easier for you, trust me."

Aila rolled her eyes. "Yeah, like I'm going to just chat it up with Saïx about the weather or something. Like he doesn't have anything better to do…"

Axel raised an eyebrow. "Do you even know who that is?" Aila's heart skipped a beat.

"Of course not!" she said defensively, quickly trying to come up with a lie to cover her tracks. "I… I heard someone say that name in my room while I was kinda out of it, did I say it right? Maybe it was Sykes… But anyway I figured that all the Organization members would be busy doing _something_ evil, so whoever the Psy-guy is probably won't want to talk to me… heh…"

Axel rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes, we're all up to no good," he deadpanned. Aila scowled halfheartedly at him, trying to focus on keeping her heart rate normal so as not to blow her cover. Fortunately, he seemed to believe her story. "But anyway, you're right, Saïx probably won't bother talking to you. You really aren't worth his time." Aila scowled once again, having taken a few breaths, now mostly over her near slip-up. "Besides, I'm just trying to help you not get on anyone's bad side around here," Axel continued. "Take the advice or leave it, I really couldn't care less."

Aila was onto her third slice of bread at this point, only half listening to what Axel was saying. She took a bite, chewed, and swallowed thoughtfully. "They'll be looking for me, you know."

"You mean Sora?" Axel scoffed. "He won't find you, not here. He won't find this place until the moment we want him to." Aila new this was true, but tried to keep her cool anyway, focusing instead on eating.

"Heya Aila!"

Aila turned to see Demyx enter the room, looking happy as usual. Axel rolled his eyes once again. Aila gave a small wave.

"Ooh, can I have some?" Demyx asked, indicating Aila's bag of bread. She shrugged and pushed it toward him, instead moving on to drinking the water in front of her. Demyx took the bread happily. "Ugh, you will not _believe_ my next assignment. I have to go to the Underworld. How gross does that sound? There will probably be a bunch of dead bodies and stuff…" Aila cracked a small smile, remembering the scenes with Demyx in the Underworld she'd witnessed whilst playing the game.

"You're not gonna get scared and run away, are you?" Axel taunted, and Aila had to disguise a sudden burst of laughter with a convenient coughing fit, remembering the scene where that did indeed happen. Demyx pouted.

"No! I'm not afraid of some stupid Underworld ghosts!" he boasted, though Aila thought she detected a hint of uncertainty in his voice.

Aila found herself strangely comfortable in the company of these two; maybe her first encounter with them had created more of a false sense of security than she had realized, but she got the feel that they, at the very least, wouldn't attack her. Besides, if she was going to be stuck here for a while, she might as well at least try to be on _somebody's _good side. True, she was feeling a bit betrayed by Axel at the moment, but for some reason it wasn't bothering her as much as it maybe should have.

"So what were you guys talking about?" Demyx asked in between bites.

"The other members," Axel said.

"Awesome!" Demyx exclaimed. "Ooh ooh I got one. Okay, you know who has the _dumbest_ weapon?" He paused, waiting for someone to respond. Axel just gave him a blank stare, so Aila decided to jump in; he looked so eager that leaving him hanging was just a little too sad.

"Um… who?" Aila asked.

"Luxord!" Demyx answered excitedly, as if it was obvious. Axel just shot Aila a look seeming to indicate that he thought Demyx was a moron. "Cause like, they're cards. Like, _playing_ cards! I mean, like he's gonna do any damage by playing a _card game_. It's not even like monsters come out of the cards or anything… that would be kinda cool actually… But his just have like numbers and stuff on them!"

"Demyx," Axel said, running his hand over his face. "Your weapon is a guitar."

"_Si_tar!" Demyx shouted indignantly. "And it's freaking awesome, so I don't know why you're bringing it up."

Axel pinched the bridge of his nose. "How you got into the Organization I will never understand."

Demyx frowned. "You're just jealous…" Aila couldn't help but smile. Their exchanges were kind of… funny.

"Hey Aila," Demyx said, recovering quickly and back to his perky self, "do you play any instruments?" Aila was caught off guard by the question.

"Um… I know some piano, yeah."

Demyx's eyes lit up. "No kidding? Maybe we could jam together sometime! My Sitar is pretty sweet." He summoned his Sitar and showed it to her. "See? Isn't it _awesome_?" He shot Axel a look, to which the redhead responded with an annoyed sigh.

Aila smiled a little. "Yeah, it's pretty cool." Demyx was starting to remind her of a male version of Yuffie.

As she finished her water, Aila began to feel tired once again. Confusion washed over her for what must have been the fourth or fifth time since she'd awoken; she'd only been up for maybe an hour at the very most. To be fair though, she hadn't felt completely awake since she'd come to…

"You ready to go back to your room?" Demyx asked, apparently noticing her sudden weariness. Aila shrugged. There was nothing better to do anyway, at least not until she was fully alert.

"You take her," Axel said to Demyx, seeming worn out himself. "It's your shift anyway."

Demyx nodded. "Sure." He stood up and held out a hand to Aila. She looked at it questioningly, her mind seeming to be slowing down significantly as she became more and more groggy. Slowly, she took his hand, standing up, her now empty glass tipping over with a sharp _clank_ as she did so.

"See ya later, Axel!" Demyx called happily over his shoulder as he led Aila out the door.

"Sure, sure," Axel replied, sounding a little preoccupied.

Aila sleepily held Demyx's hand as he led her down the maze of hallways. Time seemed to be almost skipping as they walked, and before she knew it they were back in her room, Demyx helping her into the small bed.

"Demyx…" Aila said groggily as she lay down. "What's… happening…?"

"You're just tired Aila, that's all."

Was that really all? Tired after being awake for such a short amount of time? Something wasn't adding up. Aila looked up at the grotesque fake moon outside her window, but before she could say anything else to Demyx, her eyes began to close.

"Goodnight, Aila," she heard Demyx say, his voice sounding far away as she drifted back into unconsciousness.

KHKHKHKH

When Aila opened her eyes again, she found herself among familiar, though not particularly helpful, surroundings.

"I haven't been here in a while…" she mumbled, standing up. She was once again on the mosaic-like platform in her strange dreamland. There was one major difference this time, however: rather than the usual pitch-black darkness that greeted her on her visits here, the area was extremely bright. This time, rather than having to find a way to dispel the darkness, any darkness stayed confined to the outlying areas surrounding the platform. It was almost as if someone had gotten there before her and completed the usual task already…

She took a few steps toward the center, looking around carefully. Heartless tended to try and attack her here; she had learned not to let her guard down on her visits.

"Hello?" she called, her voice echoing in the emptiness.

No answer.

"…What, no strange instructions this time…?"

Still no answer. It appeared the disembodied voice didn't feel like talking on this visit.

Aila folded her arms, confused. Was she just having a really boring dream this time? Maybe the voice hadn't been expecting her…

"Hello."

Aila jumped away from the voice and summoned her staff out of habit, spinning around to see a cloaked figure standing behind her. The figure seemed to be female, with a plain, floor-length brown cloak around her shoulders. Aila could only see her mouth, the rest of her features completely hidden beneath the hood of the cloak.

Aila eyed the figure suspiciously, holding her defensive stance. This was the first time she'd seen another human (or, at the very least, humanoid) here. She wasn't quite sure what to make of it.

"…Who are you?" she asked carefully.

"A friend," the figure said softly. Aila raised an eyebrow. This person's voice was very… mysterious. Aila likened it to the sound of small bells chiming in the wind. It was light and airy, almost musical. Something about it sounded familiar to Aila, and she suddenly felt involuntarily more at ease.

"Wait… are you the one who always tells me what to do when I come here?" Aila asked. The figure did not answer. The two stood in silence for a few moments. "O…kay… Well, am I going to fight more Heartless this time or something?"

The figure shook her head. "There are more pressing matters at the moment."

Aila frowned. "Like…?" she asked, gently pressing for more information.

The figure took a small step forward. "You need to get away from the Darkness," she said, a slight sense of urgency about her voice, though somehow it still maintained an innate calmness about it.

"The darkness…?" Aila asked, confused.

The figure nodded. "You must get back to the Light. Immediately."

Aila rested her staff on her shoulder, rubbing her neck lightly with her other hand. "I'm sorry, but… I don't understand."

The figure turned away. She seemed on edge. "That place where the Nobodies have taken you. You realize that it's In Between, right?"

"In between…?"

The figure nodded. "In between the Realm of Light and the Realm of Darkness."

"Ohh," Aila said, understanding. "Yeah, I knew that."

"You knew because you've played the game."

Aila's eyes widened. "You… know it's a game?"

"I know that there _is_ a game," the figure said, shaking her head, "but this is _not_ a game. You need to understand that."

"Well, I had kind of figured…"

"You weren't sure," the figure said, turning back around to face Aila. She spoke calmly, evenly, though with that hint of urgency still underlying her words. "You haven't been sure what to make of this whole thing. You tell yourself you've accepted it as reality, pretend that you have, but you haven't. You are still acting, whether you realize it or not, as if it's all a dream, a game. But it's not, Aila. It's time to wake up. You are in very real danger. You cannot afford to let your guard down."

Aila blinked. "You know my name?"

"Yes."

"…How?"

The figure smiled slightly. "The same way you know mine."

Aila frowned. "But… I don't know yours… I don't know who you are…"

"Yes. You do." The figure turned away yet again. "You've just forgotten."

The silence echoed around them, and Aila couldn't help but feel that nothing would disturb the two of them here, not Heartless, not Nobodies, nothing. "What do you mean?"

The figure shook her head. "That is for another time. Right now, we need to discuss your situation."

Aila frowned. "…Okay…"

The figure was serious once again. "The Realm Between, while not as perilous as the Realm of Darkness, still holds great danger for you. You need to spend as little time there as possible. You may not even realize the effect it is having on you until it's too late.

"I know you believe there is no way off the world you are currently on without using a Dark Portal, but there may be another way. Explore every inch of the world as soon as you are able. Look for anything that might be a way out."

"But Sora can't even get to The World That Never Was without going through a Dark Portal," Aila disagreed. "That's probably why the Organization chose that world. Because that's the only way in. Or out…"

The figure turned halfway toward her, so that Aila was looking at her profile. "You need to understand… While this is all very similar to the game you are familiar with, it is not identical. You've noticed a few anomalies already, I'm sure."

Aila thought about the fact that what seemed to take a day in the game could take weeks in this reality, and about all the areas in Hollow Bastion she hadn't known had existed when she'd played the game on her own world. If that was consistent with this world, then maybe there were areas that she'd never seen here…

…Areas that might have pathways to another world.

"…Okay, I think I'm starting to understand…"

The figure nodded. "Good. If, after your search, you don't discover any alternative way out… then return to this place, and we will figure out another way."

Return? Aila frowned. "Okay… how do I do that, exactly? I only dream about this place every once in a while…"

"As I told you," the figure said with a shake of her head, "this is not a dream. Whenever you need to find this place, just close your eyes, and it will appear."

Aila thought for a minute. None of this was really making sense to her. "If you say so…"

The figure began walking away, toward the edges of the platform. As she did so, the light seemed to dim around them. Aila's eyes were beginning to feel heavy… "That is all the guidance I can offer for now. Sleep well, Aila."

Aila took a step forward, toward the retreating figure. "Wait! Can you at least tell me your name? I know you said I know it already, but…"

The figure stopped and turned halfway back once again, a hint of a smile playing at her lips. "Maybe next time."

And with that, everything went dark.

KHKHKHKH

"Ah!" Aila sat up with a start, the blood rushing from her head due to the sudden movement. She held her head, seeing spots.

"Whoa whoa whoa, you okay?"

Aila looked up to see Demyx standing next to her bed, giving her a concerned look. The realization that she was back in the Castle hit her, and she calmed down a bit.

"Bad dream?" Demyx asked. Aila looked at him.

"Er… not exactly… more strange… I guess…" She shook her head, trying to get her bearings. She looked back to Demyx. "…Have you been here the whole time I was asleep?"

Demyx smiled. "Yep! It was my turn to watch you while you slept!"

Aila blanched. The way he phrased that creeped her out. A lot. "Um… _what_? …_Your_ turn?!"

"Well yeah," Demyx said. "We've been switching off to make sure you don't die at night."

"Um… thanks…? I guess…" Aila said uncomfortably. She did not like the idea of Organization members watching her while she was unconscious, even if it wasn't for any sinister reasons.

Demyx began talking again, but Aila wasn't listening. She was preoccupied with thoughts of her dream – or, well, not a dream, her… vision? She was confusing herself… she was just going to think of it as her most recent visit to the platform… place. It had been an extra strange visit. Had it all been just a figment of her imagination? If her previous visit was any indication, then she had a feeling that she shouldn't take what she had experienced there for granted. After all, she had first used her weapon on the platform, and only after that had it appeared for her in real life. She wasn't about to take what had happened this time lightly.

So, that meant that she needed to explore every inch of this world as soon as possible. True, she had technically been given free reign to go wherever she wanted, but she suspected that she might be… chaperoned the entire time.

She needed to test the waters, and to do that she needed to not be in this room.

"…and then I said, '_Water_ you talking about?' …And then he punched me. Sometimes I feel like he doesn't appreciate my wit…"

"Hey, Demyx?" Aila interrupted. "Sorry, but, I'm kinda hungry… could we maybe go to the kitchen?"

Demyx grinned. "Sure thing!" He darted over to the door, his speed surprising Aila once again. He turned to wait for her. "Well, come on if you're coming!"

Aila stood up, again a little wobbly, and followed Demyx out the door. This time she made sure to pay attention to all the turns they made to get from her room to the kitchen. She was determined not to rely on escorts in the form of Organization members for her entire stay.

Unfortunately, by the time they actually reached the kitchen, she was thoroughly confused yet again.

"Demyx, how do you know where to go?" she asked, exasperated. "This place is like a maze!"

"Don't worry, you'll get used to it," Demyx responded with a wave of his hand. 'Not if I can help it,' Aila thought, but kept her mouth shut.

The kitchen was empty when they entered, something Aila was a little relieved about. She hadn't actually had much interaction with anyone other than Axel and Demyx since she'd been here, other than her ambush (or, as Axel had called it, "meeting") with everyone the previous day, and she wanted to keep it that way. The other members… well, to be perfectly honest, they scared her a little; she wasn't in any hurry to spend time with them.

"So, what're you in the mood for?" Demyx asked, making his way to the fridge.

"What, I get more than bread and water this time?" Aila joked.

Demyx rolled his eyes. "Axel just eats whatever's easiest. He doesn't care about taste or complexity, as long as no work is involved."

"And you?" Aila asked.

Demyx smiled. "I like actual food."

Aila smiled too. "Thank goodness." They both laughed a little, and Demyx proceeded to open the fridge.

"Okay, let's see here… we have eggs, bacon, bread, cheese…"

"Oh! Window Panes!" Aila exclaimed. Demyx looked over at her, raising an eyebrow.

"Huh?"

Aila smiled. "Window Panes. My dad makes them all the time." She walked over to the fridge and grabbed the items Demyx had listed. "They're really good, and pretty easy to make…"

Now that Aila was more alert, she was able to take in the kitchen more clearly than before. There was a row of counters against the right wall with cabinets attached to the walls above them, a large fridge on the right side end of the row. A sleek-looking sink sat in the middle of the counters. Various appliances decorated the countertops to the left of the sink, while the countertops to the right of the sink held things like knives, paper towels, and so on. A center island added additional counter space, with stools on the far side of the island providing spots for people to sit and eat if they so chose. All of this was on the right side of the room; the table Aila had sat at last night was on the left. Everything in the kitchen looked very modern and was, you guessed it, all white. Aila was rather impressed with the Organization's amenities; it made them seem more human in her eyes. She vaguely wondered if this was a good or bad thing…

"Okay!" Demyx said excitedly. He removed his gloves, setting them next to the sink. "What should I do?"

Aila was caught off guard. For some reason, an Organization member removing his gloves was a little unsettling to her. His hands looked normal. Human. Unexciting. She shook her head, not really sure what she'd expected his hands to look like.

"Why don't you make a couple pieces of bacon, and I'll start on the rest," Aila said, setting everything out. "Where are your bowls and cutting boards and stuff?"

Demyx pointed to a drawer under the center island. "Cutting boards are in there, and bowls and stuff are in the cabinet to the right of the sink." He opened the cabinet directly beneath the sink and took out a frying pan. "Pots and pans and stuff are down here."

"Okay, got it," Aila said, getting the supplies she needed. She took a wild guess and opened a drawer to the right of the sink to find silverware; her first guess was correct.

She cracked two eggs into a bowl, adding a little bit of water to her mix. Demyx was getting started on the bacon, so she took some grated cheese and added it to the eggs, mixing it all together. She then took two pieces of bread and, after buttering both sides, cut a good-sized hole in the middle of each. She popped one of the bread centers in her mouth and held the other out to Demyx. "Want one?"

"Sure!" Demyx beamed, taking the bread happily. "I think these are done by the way," he said, gesturing to the bacon. Aila confirmed that it looked good, and they took it off the heat. After it cooled down a little, she took the pieces and crumpled them up, adding them to her egg and cheese mixture. She grabbed another frying pan, putting it on the stove and placing her prepared bread in the pan.

"So," she said, waiting for the bread to toast a little, "what do you do around here all day anyway?"

Demyx thought for a minute. "Hmm… well, if I don't have a mission, then I usually play my Sitar in my room… usually we're busy with missions all the time though."

Aila raised an eyebrow. She had only ever seen the members go on a maximum of two missions each during the game, and Demyx hadn't even gone on his first one yet. She realized she shouldn't be surprised, however; it would make sense that they had missions that didn't correspond with Sora's journey.

"So… no one's usually here during the day then?" she asked nonchalantly, beginning to pour her mixture into the holes in the bread.

"Well, _someone's_ usually around," Demyx said, "but yeah, it's generally pretty deserted around here." Aila filed this information away; a deserted castle would no doubt come in handy later.

"Do you have the day off today then or something?"

"Nah, I'm working right now!"

"Huh?"

Demyx smiled sheepishly. "I told you we had shifts… The Boss wants to make sure you don't get lost, I guess…"

"Oh." Aila had a sneaking suspicion that Xemnas didn't really care if she got lost. Now, having her escape or sabotage something – that was another story.

"Is this ready?" Demyx asked in regards to the toasting bread. Aila thought he was purposefully changing the subject, but she didn't press him.

"Yeah, probably," Aila said, grabbing the bowl containing her previously made mixture. Carefully, she poured the contents of the bowl into the holes in the bread until they were completely full.

"Now what?" Demyx asked.

"We'll give it a few minutes and then flip them over. You may want to grab a spatula or something."

Demyx did so, but seemed confused. "Won't the stuff just fall out of the middle when you flip them?"

Aila smiled. "I asked the same thing the first time I saw them made. Don't worry, as long as we do it fast enough, it won't have a chance to fall out."

KHKHKHKHKH

"That was _awesome_," Demyx sighed. The two of them had just finished enjoying the Window Panes.

"Told you," Aila said with a small smile. Unfortunately, she was now feeling a bit homesick as she recalled eating the same thing with her family back on her world. She shook it off, deciding she didn't have time to be homesick today. It was time to get down to business.

"So, Demyx," she began slowly. "I was wondering… could I maybe see what's outside the Castle today?"

Demyx, who had brought their dishes to the sink, washed them sparkling clean with one blast of water. "Sure! Though, oh, I won't be able to show you around… I have to go to a briefing."

"About the Underworld?" Aila asked, trying to keep the conversation casual. Demyx nodded. "That's okay! I understand. I'll be totally fine on my own."

Demyx smiled. "Don't worry, you won't be on your own! Xigbar should be here to replace me any minute now, so—"

Aila blanched. "_Xigbar_ is replacing you?!"

Demyx nodded. "Well yeah. It's his shift next." He glanced nervously at Aila. "I know you two didn't exactly get off on the right foot, but… he's not _so_ bad… well I mean, he's not great, but…"

Aila was distraught. Not only did her theory of her being constantly chaperoned appear to be spot on, but now she was going to have to try and search for a way out with _Xigbar_, the man who had brought her here in the first place, watching her every move. She couldn't believe her bad luck.

She supposed she could put off searching until she was paired with Demyx again. But, no, he was heading off to the Underworld very soon it sounded like, and she felt like she probably couldn't afford to wait until he got back… Aila's stomach dropped.

As if he had heard the mention of his name, Xigbar came sauntering through the kitchen door at that very moment, looking just as unhappy with this arrangement as Aila was.

"Oh, hey Xig," Demyx said with a half smile as he put the now clean dishes away. "You ready to switch?"

Xigbar crossed his arms. "Whatever," he huffed. Aila had a bad feeling that he wasn't going to be nearly as fun or friendly a chaperone as Demyx.

"Aila says she wants to go outside the Castle," Demyx said cheerfully. "So that'll give you guys something to do for a while."

Xigbar seemed very unpleased by this and shot Aila a distasteful look. Aila just averted her gaze, trying to appear nonchalant. She noticed she was getting better at keeping her heart rate in check.

"Well, see you later, Aila!" Demyx said with a wave, and with that he was gone. Aila suddenly felt extremely vulnerable, with just her and Xigbar left alone in the kitchen. If being with Axel and Demyx made her feel at ease, being with Xigbar made her feel the exact opposite.

The silence went on for an excruciatingly long time, Xigbar staring at Aila, Aila staring at the wall as she tried to think of a game plan. Her thoughts went back and forth between going ahead with her plan to search the grounds and just abandoning the plan altogether. Heading back to her room and sitting around silently seemed like the safest route with Xigbar, after all. But what good would that do her? After a fierce inner battle, she decided that she needed to go ahead and try to search for a way out whether he was following her around or not. The figure on the platform had made the matter seem rather urgent, and something inside her seemed almost compelled to do what the figure had asked of her.

Aila cleared her throat, daring to look at Xigbar. He looked just as disgruntled as he had when his one-sided staring contest had begun.

"So… let's go, then," Aila said, a little uncertainly. She headed for the door, casting a sideways glance at Xigbar that she hoped looked braver than it felt, and continued out into the hall. After a few seconds of walking, she heard Xigbar begrudgingly begin to follow her, mumbling between gritted teeth as he did so.

This was going to be a long day.

KHKHKHKH

Thanks for reading! And remember, reviews make me write faster~!

~FP


	11. New Cookbook Entries Unlocked (1)

_~NEW RECIPE ATTAINED~_

"**Bean and Barley Soup"**

**Serves Four**

* * *

Items needed:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, chopped

2 stalks of celery, with leaves, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

2 tablespoon tomato paste

1 teaspoon dried marjoram

1 teaspoon dried thyme

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1/3 cup lentils

½ cup barley

2 red or white creamer potatoes, cut into chunks

1 15 ounce can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed

Your choice in season vegetables

8 cups of water

or

enough to cover the soup contents by 2 inches

2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

* * *

**Instructions**

Step 1:

Banish any ninjas in the area from the kitchen to avoid potential cooking disasters.

Step 2:

Place the olive oil in a medium-large soup pot over medium heat. Add the chopped onion, celery and carrots. Sauté for 3-5 minutes, or until the veggies begin to soften and become fragrant.

Step 3:

Stir in the tomato paste. Season with the dried marjoram, thyme, salt and pepper. Sauté for 3-5 minutes more, stirring so the flavors meld and the spices are evenly distributed.

Step 4:

Add the barley, lentils, potatoes, kidney beans and whatever other seasonal vegetables you are adding and stir to combine. Pour in enough water to cover the soup contents by about 2 inches, about 8 cups depending on the size of the soup pot. Stir to combine, cover partially and let simmer for about 1 hour.

Step 5:

Remove the soup from the heat and let sit a few minutes before serving. Top with fresh parsley, serve to weary travelers and enjoy!

* * *

_~NEW RECIPE ATTAINED~_

"**Window Panes"**

**Makes Two Panes**

* * *

Items needed:

2 Slices of Bread

2 Eggs

2-4 Pieces of Cooked, Crumbled Bacon

¼ Cup of Water

½ Cup of Grated Cheddar Cheese (can add more/less to taste)

Butter

* * *

**Instructions**

Step 1:

Crack the eggs into a mixing bowl. Add water, cheese, and bacon. Stir until mixture seems consistent.

Step 2:

Butter both sides of the bread. Make sure it is spread evenly across the entire surface of the bread.

Step 3:

Take the slices of bread and cut out golf ball sized holes in the center of each with a cookie cutter or knife.

Step 4:

Eat the pieces of bread you just cut out. Or throw them away if you wanna miss out.

Step 5:

Place slices of bread in a medium frying pan over medium heat. Allow to sit for around one to two minutes.

Step 6:

Pour egg mixture into the hole of one slice of bread until it fills up to the top of the hole. Repeat with the second piece of bread.

Step 7:

Let sit until mixture has thickened to desired consistency. Using a spatula, quickly flip each piece of bread onto its opposite side, doing your best to keep the egg mixture from falling out. Allow to sit until the bread is toasted the desired amount.

Step 8:

Share with your friendliest captor to distract everyone from the lack of actual plot points.

* * *

(Author's Note: I was battling writer's block and decided to type this up. Let me know if you want me to do this with any more recipes used in the future. I'm not sure how much more cooking will be in this story though… we'll see!)

**Soup recipe credited to meatlessmonday dot com**

**Window Panes recipe credited to me**


	12. Twists and Turns

Here's the real chapter! Sorry if I confused you with the recipe thing…

* * *

"_The good enemy accompanies you on the journey,_

_but you will never reach your destination with him."_

― Toba Beta, _My Ancestor Was an Ancient Astronaut_

* * *

**Chapter 11: Twists and Turns**

"What are you doing _now_?"

Aila turned around, having been in the middle of looking intently at a wall in the back of one of the many alleys on this world. Xigbar was giving her a very bored, albeit slightly angry, look.

"Just… looking around," Aila said for the tenth time, strolling past him and out onto the dark streets once again. They had been walking around for about an hour now, Aila being sure to look in every alley they passed; she didn't want to miss any corner that might potentially hide some secret way out of this world. She wasn't exactly sure what she'd do if she actually found something… Run for it? Fight Xigbar? She'd figure that out if it came to that. To be honest, after having absolutely no luck so far, she was starting to get a little disheartened about the whole thing.

"Uh huh," Xigbar said skeptically. The fact that he had yet to stop her not-so-subtle snooping also worried Aila. He didn't seem at all concerned that she'd find something. He mostly just seemed annoyed.

"So how big is this world, anyway?" Aila asked.

Xigbar rolled his eyes. "Don't know."

Aila frowned. "You don't know how big the world you've been living on is?"

"Nope."

"Yes you do."

Xigbar glared at her. "Don't question me, kid."

Aila frowned but said nothing. Xigbar was very unhelpful; but, then again, she hadn't really expected him to be.

They walked in silence for a while longer, Aila veering off into every corner, double checking every crevice, but finding nothing unusual. This entire world was just full of stone streets, buildings, and the occasional lamppost. It was quite depressing, in Aila's opinion.

"This world is so boring!" she groaned when they reached the end of the street. This, she thought, was where Sora would eventually enter the world, as he did in the game. Unfortunately, there was no such entrance in existence right now. Just another wall. She touched the wall, a glimmer of hope telling her that it might not be solid, but unfortunately it was.

"Not up to your standards?" Xigbar sneered, seeming a little amused with her discontent.

Aila wasn't listening. As far as she could tell, they'd ventured pretty much everywhere on this world already (she assumed it was so small because it was an In Between world), and she hadn't found anything. Maybe her dream hadn't meant anything after all…

"Whatever," she sighed, turning back and making her way back toward the castle, resigned.

"I can't believe I'm stuck babysitting. This is such bullsh—"

"Feel free to leave," Aila spat, "I don't need a chaperone."

"Believe me, girly, I would if I could." He frowned, crossing his arms.

"What, you being punished or something?" Aila asked sharply. Xigbar didn't answer. "Wait… you are, aren't you!"

Xigbar huffed. "It's none of your business."

"What, did you wear the wrong robes to a meeting or something?" Aila taunted.

"Ha ha," Xigbar deadpanned.

"I should be making this more difficult for you then, if it's supposed to be a punishment…" Aila mused, putting a finger to her chin.

"You mean you _weren't_ trying to make it difficult until now?" Xigbar asked, a vein on his head beginning to throb. Aila smirked.

She wasn't sure why, but she felt strangely confident, even though Xigbar frightened her more than just a little bit. She reasoned that if he were going to attack her, he would have done so already. Though she also decided that maybe she shouldn't push her luck…

She decided to take another tactic.

"So… you seem like you're pretty high up around here, huh?"

Xigbar frowned at her. "Don't flatter yourself. You're not exactly 'high up' on our priority list."

Aila scowled. "Not because you're watching me. But you were sent to supervise Axel, weren't you? In Hollow Bastion?"

Xigbar shifted a bit. "Sure, I guess."

"So you probably know a lot about what's going on around here then."

Xigbar was getting suspicious. "Maybe…"

Aila walked silently for a few seconds, trying to decide what she had the best chance of getting information from Xigbar about. Probably not a way out; anything he _did _tell her on that subject would most likely be a lie. But there was one thing no one had been able to explain to her as of yet.

"Why am I here?"

Xigbar smirked. "You really don't know, do you?"

Aila frowned. "Well I'm not asking just for kicks…"

Xigbar continued walking, a smirk still lingering on his lips.

"So… why am I here?" Aila tried again. Xigbar looked at her.

"Let's just say… you looked useful to us."

Aila raised an eyebrow. "Useful how?"

Xigbar didn't say anything further. What did he mean, she looked useful? Did he mean her appearance? No, that couldn't be it, for the most part she looked like an ordinary, if not slightly clueless, teen, at least by this universe's standards. She searched her brain to try and remember something she may have done that would have caught the Organization's attention. It couldn't have been any battles she'd had; she was still just slightly above novice (at best) in that area. The same went for magic – she may have mastered a few defensive spells, but none of her offensive spells were anything to fuss over. She also felt like she had done a pretty good job covering her tracks as far as her knowledge from her world was concerned. So then, what could it be?

"Hurry up," Xigbar snapped. Aila realized she had fallen behind and quickly caught up to the Nobody, still wracking her brain for an answer. If there was no way off this world, then she was going to have to prepare herself for whatever they were planning for her.

Something told her she wasn't going to like it. Whatever it was.

KHKHKHKHKH

The next couple of weeks were pretty much the same routine for Aila. She would wake up, get some food, and then spend the remainder of the day wandering around either the castle or the grounds looking for something useful, all with her babysitter-of-the-day shadowing her every move.

She had been able to return to the dream-but-not-a-dream place once, again while she was sleeping and quite unexpectedly, as usual. The hooded figure only told her to keep her eyes open and continue searching for a way off the world, again emphasizing the importance of doing so before too much time had passed, but failing to elaborate on why it was so important. Aila was beginning to find the figure less and less helpful.

She expanded her search from just looking for a way out to looking for _anything _that might be of some sort of use to her; some way to communicate or send messages to Hollow Bastion or Sora (her communication device had gone missing, probably taken when she'd first arrived, but she doubted that would have worked on another world anyway), hiding spots on the grounds that might be helpful in a tight spot, and she even started trying to make a mental map of the area for Sora to give him if and when she saw him before he got to the castle.

She had also decided that any information she found out while she was here was fair game to tell Sora, regardless of whether or not he was supposed to know it yet. Since she was basically part of the game now, it made sense that anything she found out while she was here would be okay to tell him, right?

Unfortunately, the Organization Members seemed to realize this as well. They were very tight lipped about any of their plans, and the fact that one of them was always following her around made it hard to spy on them. Aila thought her best shot at getting information would probably be from Demyx; unfortunately for her, he had left for his mission in the Underworld before she'd gotten the chance to talk to him much about anything important and had been gone for the past few days.

"So… Xaldin seems pretty busy," Aila mused one afternoon as she and Axel sat in the kitchen.

Axel sighed. "I guess."

"What kind of world has he been running off to?"

"Don't know."

"…Demyx has been gone a while…"

Axel ran a hand over his face. "Look, kid, how long are you going to keep this up? You know I'm not gonna tell you anything."

Aila folded her arms on the table, resting her chin on them. "Yeah… I know."

Axel raised an eyebrow. "You gave up surprisingly easily." Aila just shrugged.

The truth was, she was beginning to feel rather resigned. It seemed like she had exhausted all of her options here, and was officially out of ideas. She blew a strand of hair out of her face. This sucked.

"Hey, come on, why the long face?" Axel asked. Aila looked at him and rolled her eyes.

"I'm a prisoner here."

"Are you just now realizing that?"

Aila sighed. In a way, she was.

"You don't have to be a prisoner, you know," Axel said casually.

"Hm?" Aila asked, raising an eyebrow.

Axel leaned back in his chair. "I overheard the Boss talking. I'm thinking he wants you to join us."

Aila's heart dropped. "In order to join you, wouldn't I need to be… you know…"

"Turned into a Nobody?" Axel finished for her. She nodded. "Maybe, I guess. Would that be so bad?"

"Yes," Aila said with a scowl.

"Jeez, harsh." Axel smirked. "Just as well, you'd give us a bad name anyway."

"Hey!" Aila exclaimed, sitting up. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, let's see, you can barely fight, you're entirely too easy to scare, you're extremely naïve—"

"I am not!" Aila cried indignantly.

Axel chuckled. "And it's far too easy to get under your skin."

Aila blushed, realizing that she was standing now, her fists balled in frustration. She relaxed sitting down again. "I'm on edge."

"Yeah, I got that." Axel stretched. "Honestly, I can't figure out why the Boss wants you here, other than maybe as some sort of leverage. But if we were going for that you think we'd just go after that redhead girl or something…"

Aila paused, forcing herself not to show that she knew anything about the girl he was talking about: Kairi. The irony of him mentioning something she knew he would eventually actually do was enough to take her mind off of her own situation for a few moments at least.

The door opened behind her and she turned to see Saïx enter the room. She shrunk back slightly; Saïx was one of the only members that hadn't been assigned to watch her at one time or another, and from what she'd seen of him… well, she was thankful that she hadn't had to interact with him thus far.

Until now.

"Come with me," he said, his cold eyes meeting hers. It was not a request.

"What's going on?" Axel asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Xemnas would like to see her," Saïx said in the same cool manner as before. Aila's eyes widened.

"Me? Why?" she asked.

"You can ask him yourself." Saïx turned and headed for the door. "Hurry up."

Aila looked at Axel, slightly panic-stricken. Last time she'd seen Xemnas, Axel had been with her; for some reason she had felt slightly more secure with him there, regardless of the fact that he was one of them.

He looked at her for a moment, seeming to debate whether he should stay or not before getting to his feet. "Well, you heard Saïx, let's go kid." Saïx turned and gave Axel a skeptical look. "What? I'm assigned to her all day today, so I might as well come too."

"If you must," Saïx sighed. Aila gave Axel a worried look, but he nodded at her and they followed Saïx down the hall.

"Stay calm, kid," Axel said under his breath. Aila realized that her heart was beating rather fast once again and quickly tried to calm herself down. She took a few deep breaths, trying to focus on something else.

They climbed up stairway after stairway, and before long Aila realized that they were headed for the roof. As they stepped out into the open air, Aila looked up at the heart-shaped moon and shuddered. That moon always made her feel very uncomfortable. It was almost like she could sense how unnatural it was; it was very unsettling.

Xemnas was standing with his back to them. He too was looking up at the moon. Aila vaguely wondered how long he spent every day just looking up at it… he seemed to do it a lot.

"Hello, Aila," he said in a way that Aila thought was probably meant to sound friendly. "Please, come. Let's talk, shall we?"

Aila looked at Axel once again, but the Nobody seemed… confused? He looked at her and shrugged, clearly just as unsure about what Xemnas was up to as she was.

She walked forward hesitantly, until she was only a few steps behind the leader of the Organization. She held her breath, trying to prepare herself. Her first thought was that he was going to try to turn her into a Nobody. She wasn't entirely sure how he'd do that… Stab her with a Keyblade? Whatever he tried, she wasn't going to go down without a fight.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" he asked, still looking at the grotesque moon above them.

Aila looked up at it again as well, grimacing as she did so. "I… I guess… But it's no substitute for the real thing." She heard Axel groan slightly behind her, and could practically hear him warning her to keep her mouth shut.

Xemnas smirked, turning to face her. "Indeed it's not." He studied her for a moment, and Aila suddenly felt very vulnerable. "I trust you have been enjoying your stay here." It was not a question, and Aila did not answer.

"By now I'm sure you've realized that you will not be leaving anytime soon, despite your… attempts." Aila's eyes widened slightly, but she quickly realized she shouldn't be surprised; she hadn't exactly been subtle with her attempts to find a way off this world, and the other members had surely been reporting her every move to Xemnas.

"But why do we need to live as enemies?" he continued, gesturing with his arms as he spoke, giving Aila the sense of him giving her a grand speech. "Since you are going to be here with us, it would naturally benefit everyone for us to work with, rather than against, one another."

Aila took an unconscious step back. If he tried to come anywhere near her heart, she'd mess him up so bad! …Or at least kick him and run. Kicking him and running sounded good.

"Relax, child. I am not interested in your heart."

Aila froze. Had he read her mind?!

"You will stay as you are. You are more valuable in your current state than you would be in an altered form." He smiled. "We will train you, harness your abilities, both those you already have and those you have yet to discover. You will be granted access to worlds you've never even imagined, given power beyond your dreams. Anything you wish for will be yours. All you have to do, is join us."

Xemnas looked her in the eyes. "What do you say?"

Aila blinked. "…I won't betray my friends."

Xemnas continued to smile. "I thought you might feel that way. Those of you born in the Light have such a hard time breaking ties. You will see it our way, in time. But, unfortunately for you… I am not feeling very patient today."

Before Aila knew what was happening, he had struck. She let out a sharp cry as she flew backwards, tumbling to the floor before coming to a stop on her back. Dazed, she sat up, clutching her side in pain. She looked up fearfully at Xemnas, who stood where she had been previously, a smile tugging at his lips, his Ethereal Blades glowing a menacing red.

"Is this really necessary?" Axel asked. He seemed utterly confused. "Isn't this kind of going against what we talked about?"

"There have been new developments," Xemnas stated, not taking his eyes off of Aila, who slowly got to her feet. "We no longer have the luxury of time."

Aila glared at him. It looked like she was going to have to fight him. Her mind screamed at her that she wasn't ready, that there was no way she could win. She attempted to squash those thoughts and instead focus on coming up with some sort of plan, but before she could come up with anything more than "run", he was directly in front of her once again.

"Ah!" Aila gasped, summoning her staff and narrowly deflecting his attack, skidding to the side and backing away toward the edge of the building. She realized that the only way off the roof was being blocked by Saïx and Axel; she was trapped. She also noted that she was feeling extremely worn out, which made no sense; the fight had only just started! What was happening?

"Come now, child," Xemnas said, turning to face her. "This fighting is pointless. There is no need for such nonsense."

"What do you want?" Aila shouted, deciding that part one of her plan would be to try and stall. She was still working on thinking up part two.

"As I said, I want you to join us."

"But why? What use could I possibly be to you?"

Xemnas smirked. "My dear, you truly are blind to the truth. But then, you are but a child, so how could you be expected to understand?"

He struck again, so fast that Aila barely had time to raise her staff to defend herself. She once again stumbled back, barely keeping her footing. She realized now that she was on the edge of the building, panicking slightly as she looked down; she was _extremely _high up.

She looked up just in time to see Xemnas vanish. Her eyes widened, and she looked around wildly, trying to find him, knowing he'd appear somewhere in the next few moments. Unfortunately, since she was on the edge of the building, she hadn't thought to look behind her.

A sharp, hot pain shot up her back and she fell forward with a yelp. She pushed herself up onto her hands and knees, breathing heavily, her back throbbing painfully.

"I'm sure Alex wouldn't want you to suffer like this."

Aila's eyes widened, and she looked up at Xemnas in disbelief. "How do you…?"

"How do I know the name of your sister?" Xemnas was practically beaming, clearly enjoying this far too much to be healthy. "My dear child, I know so much more than you could ever wish to."

He was suddenly barraging her with attacks, so fast and with so many that Aila was barely able to process them. All she knew was that there was pain everywhere; every inch of her was on fire, flashes of red from Xemnas's weapons filling her vision. She attempted to defend herself, but his attacks were just too fast. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, it stopped. She collapsed to the floor, her breathing labored, her vision blurred. She could hear her heart beating loudly in her ears.

Xemnas raised one of his blades high above his head, getting ready to strike one more time. Aila squeezed her eyes shut, bracing herself for the blow. She heard a loud _clang!_ and waited. After a few seconds, she opened one eye, her vision cutting in and out.

Axel stood before her, one of his Chakrams having connected with Xemnas's Blade.

"You have a habit of interfering, don't you, Number VIII?" Xemnas asked dangerously.

"We need her," Axel said in a low voice, standing his ground. They stared at one another for a few moments before, to Aila's surprise, Xemnas backed down. He looked at Axel, a quizzical look on his face. Suddenly, he struck with a sideways slash, sending Axel flying to the side, tumbling to the floor. Xemnas turned his attention back to Aila.

"You wouldn't want young Alex to go through this too, now would you?" Aila did not answer, feeling dazed and confused. "If you do not join us, we will be just as well off with her. She shares similar traits that will suit our needs as well. The decision is simple, my dear. Pledge your loyalty to us." His weapons vanished, and he turned away. "I will expect your answer tomorrow evening."

Aila's ears were ringing. She tried to move, but her muscles screamed in protest. She felt like all of the energy had been sucked out of her, that she was being crushed by the atmosphere around her. She struggled to stay conscious, but she knew it was a losing battle; with each passing second she could feel herself being pulled further and further into darkness.

KHKHKHKHKH

"_Do you see now?"_

_Aila felt like she was falling, surrounded by immense darkness. Or maybe her eyes were simply closed, she couldn't tell. Her body felt cold and heavy, the air around her thick in her lungs._

"_Do you see now?" a voice asked her once again._

'_Who…?' Aila thought, her thoughts resonating aloud._

"_This is not a game. The danger is real. Do you see?"_

_Aila attempted to open her eyes, which did seem to be closed after all, but they were too heavy. 'Yes.'_

"_This world is taking its toll on you, Aila. You need to get out."_

'_I looked everywhere. There's no way out.'_

"_There is always a way. You just need to open your eyes to the possibilities. You have to get out."_

'_I'm out of options…'_

"_You aren't."_

'_If I don't join them, he'll kill me. He'll hurt Alex.'_

"_Then join them."_

'_What?'_

"_Joining them is not the end. Maybe it will open the door to what you really need."_

'_I can't betray Sora.'_

"_I didn't say to."_

'_But… I don't understand.'_

"_You will."_

_Aila finally forced her eyes open. She was indeed falling in the darkness, but she wasn't alone. The hooded figure was next to her, holding her as they fell. The figure pulled Aila tighter into her arms, and in that moment, she felt safe._

KHKHKHKHKH

Aila awoke to the feeling of something damp on her head. She panicked, her eyes flying open as she bolted upright. She immediately wished she hadn't done that, her entire body suddenly screaming in pain.

"Whoa, slow down!" She looked over to see Demyx once again sitting beside her, a damp cloth in his hand. "You might wanna take it easy… you look pretty bad." He gently pushed her back down onto her pillow, placing the cloth back onto her forehead.

"When did you get back?" Aila croaked, her voice sounding strained.

"About an hour ago," Demyx said gently. He seemed to have genuine concern in his eyes as he spoke. "Axel told me what happened…"

Aila's eyes widened. "Where is Axel? Is he okay?" she asked quickly.

"I'm fine." Aila looked behind her to see Axel sitting in the corner by the door, his usual bored expression seeming slightly strained. Aila sighed with relief. She hadn't seen how badly he'd been hit, but he did indeed seem fine.

Her thoughts traveled back to her fight (though it had been so utterly one sided it could hardly be called that) with Xemnas. What had happened? She knew she wasn't ready to fight him, but she had fallen so easily. It was as if her energy had disappeared moments after the fight began. Had Xemnas done something? No, she didn't think that was it. She remembered something the hooded figure had mentioned once, about the Realm Between. _'You may not even realize the effect it is having on you until it's too late.'_ Had this been what she'd been alluding to?

"So, Aila… what are you going to do?" Axel asked, eying her carefully.

Aila closed her eyes. "I don't know."

"I don't understand, you're sure he said that he wouldn't change her into a Nobody, but he still wants her to join?" Demyx asked. "That doesn't make any sense…"

"You're right, it doesn't." Axel folded his arms with a scowl. "I have a feeling Xemnas isn't telling us everything, and I don't like it."

Aila looked up at Demyx. "I need to get out of here," she said, almost in a whisper. The desperation in her voice surprised her; she hadn't realized how scared she was. She wasn't just scared – she was terrified. For the first time, she fully understood the danger she found herself in. Xemnas's attack had snuffed out any doubts in her mind. This was not a game. It was not a dream. She still didn't understand how, but… this was all very real.

"I agree," Axel said. Aila blinked. He agreed? "Whatever Xemnas is planning… I don't like it. If it's something he has to hide from us, then it can't be good."

"Yeah… I wonder if Saïx knows what he's up to?" Demyx asked, putting a finger to his chin.

"Probably, but he wouldn't tell us if he did," Axel said with a huff.

"So what do we do?" Demyx asked, his brow furrowed with concern.

Axel looked Aila in the eyes. "You're going to have to join us."

"Wait, wouldn't that be the opposite of getting her out?" Demyx asked.

"He'll force her to join anyway, one way or another, so it'll be easier for everyone if she does it of her own free will," Axel stated matter-of-factly. "Once you're in, we'll work on phase two."

"What's phase two?" Aila asked weakly. She felt like she was on the verge of falling asleep once again.

"What's the only way off this world?" Axel asked her.

"A Portal?" Aila asked. Axel nodded.

"And what generally is our purpose for leaving via said Portals?"

"Ooh ooh! To go on missions!" Demyx exclaimed, excited that he knew the answer.

"Very good," Axel deadpanned, rolling his eyes. "So, it would be logical to assume that your best chance of getting out of here would be to tag along with someone to assist with their mission."

"And then she can escape while she's on another world!" Demyx said with a nod, understanding where Axel was going.

Aila looked up at the ceiling, concerned. "But if I leave… he said he'd go after Alex…"

"Alex?" Demyx asked.

"Her sister," Axel clarified. "Look, I think he was just saying that to scare you. I have no idea how he knew you even had a sister, but if he had any idea where she was and she was as useful as he made her out to be, she'd be here with us."

Aila thought about this. "But that doesn't mean he wouldn't try to go after her if I left, right?"

Axel shrugged. "He might. But if he's too busy sending people after you, then he might not even bother. Believe me, finding someone when you have no leads on where they might be is no easy feat."

Aila still wasn't convinced. "But how could you guarantee that he'd send people after me? If I'm a flight risk, wouldn't he maybe just decide to try someone else?"

"You'd have to really work on your acting skills, that's for sure," Axel said with a snort. Aila raised an eyebrow. "You'll need to convince him that you are a huge asset to this team. You'll need to act as if you have fully decided to give yourself over to the Organization. He'll need to believe, even after you escape, that if he could just get you back you'd be on our side once again."

"But then why would I escape if I actually wanted to be here?"

"Maybe you don't escape," Axel said, a twinkle in his eye. "Maybe you're captured by someone else."

Aila frowned. "I really don't want to be captured by anyone else…"

Axel rolled his eyes. "No, it would just _look_ like you were captured. But really you'd be escaping. Are you following?"

Aila blinked. "Um… no…"

Axel groaned. "Sora. Sora would capture you."

"Sora doesn't seem like the capturing type…" Demyx said skeptically.

"No you dunderheads, it would be set up," Axel said, exasperated. "To whoever you're with, it would look like you've been captured by Sora, when in reality you're just escaping with him."

"Ohh," Demyx said, finally comprehending. Aila began to smile.

"That might actually work…" she mused.

"Of course it'll work. Jeez, you two are slow," Axel huffed. "We'll get started in a few days, after Aila gets initiated."

Aila was suddenly suspicious. "…Why would you help me escape?"

Axel stood up. "Don't misunderstand, kid. This is to help us. You may think that we're all conniving, backstabbing bad guys, but I for one do not like people who are supposedly working in my best interests plotting behind my back. The sooner you're out of here, the less I'll have to worry about whatever Xemnas is planning to use you for."

He walked toward the door. "Get some sleep. I'll go give Xemnas your answer." The door opened, and he began to make his way out. He paused in the doorway. "Take care of her, Dem."

"Sure," Demyx said, putting his hand on the cloth on Aila's head. Aila felt cool, refreshing water fill the now somewhat dry cloth, and she sighed lightly. Axel continued out into the hall, the door closing behind him.

"Do you think it'll work?" Aila asked, feeling herself drifting back into unconsciousness.

"We'll never know if we don't try," Demyx said. "I can't believe he attacked you… I don't get it."

'He's a bad guy,' Aila thought groggily. As she drifted off to sleep, part of her couldn't help but wonder if Demyx fully understood that.

KHKHKHKHKH

"Do I really have to wear this?"

Axel rolled his eyes as he leaned against the door in Aila's room. "For the last time, _yes_. You're joining the Organization, and this is what we wear. Get over it."

"It's so… heavy. How do you guys do anything in these things?" Aila asked, zipping up the Organization coat that Axel had given her over her clothes.

"You're just weak."

Aila scowled. "Well so~rry that I'm not a big tough Nobody like you," she grumbled, kicking off her old shoes and slipping on the standard Organization boots. "So… what am I going to have to do at this… initiation thing?"

"Probably nothing," Axel shrugged as Aila sat down on the side of the bed to lace up the boots. "Xemnas will probably just announce to the rest of the members that you're joining, and that'll be it. I'm not sure how that's gonna go over with everyone, though…"

Aila frowned. She really didn't like this. She felt like a traitor. What would the Restoration Committee say if they knew about this? Would they even want her to come back?

"Okay," she said, standing up. She grimaced. "I guess I'm ready."

Axel looked her over. "Well what d'ya know? If it weren't for that pained look on your face, I'd think you were actually a willing new member."

"Great," Aila said with a sigh. She winced and put a hand on her back; it was still pretty painful where Xemnas had hit her during their earlier confrontation.

"I've got something that might raise your spirits a little," Axel said with a smirk. He reached into his coat and pulled out a small blue pouch.

Aila's eyes widened. "Hey! That's mine, isn't it? Where did you…?"

"I took it off you when you first got here," Axel shrugged, tossing it back to her. "One of those Potions in there will probably make you feel better." Aila took a bottle out and inspected it, not entirely positive that Axel hadn't done something to the Potions while they'd been in his possession. He rolled his eyes again. "I'm helping you, remember? Do you really think I'd tamper with those?"

After thinking about it for a few moments, Aila decided that they were probably safe and gratefully drank the little Potion. She immediately felt better, her back only vaguely stinging now, the rest of her seeming to be completely healed. She smiled.

"Okay, let's get going. We don't wanna keep everyone waiting too long." Axel turned, the door sliding open as he walked out into the hallway. Aila slipped the pouch into an inside pocket in her coat and hurried after him, beginning to get nervous.

Axel glanced at her. "Remember, as far as everyone is concerned, you _want _to join," he said in a hushed voice. "Get your heart under control, or you'll give yourself away."

Aila nodded, taking some deep breaths, thinking about calming things, feeling her racing heart begin to slow back to normal.

"Hm, you're getting pretty decent at that," Axel commented, seeming slightly impressed. "That'll make your training much easier…"

"Training?" Aila asked.

Axel shook his head. "Later."

As they neared what Aila assumed was the room with the tall chairs again, she heard Saïx's voice echoing from inside.

"…did not succeed in anything you were sent out to achieve. Not only did you fail to recruit Number XIII, but you also failed to retrieve the Olympus Stone."

Aila gave Axel a questioning look.

"Demyx's mission didn't go so well…" Axel whispered. Aila furrowed her brow, concerned for Demyx. She'd never thought about the ramifications of a failed mission… What would they do to him?

"As punishment for your insubordination, you are hereby on probation for a length of time to be determined at a later date," Saïx continued. "You will await further orders outlining what will be expected of you during your probationary period. Is that understood, Number IX?"

"Understood," Demyx said. Aila thought he sounded different than usual; she'd never heard him speak without his usual cheery disposition. She bit her lip.

"He'll be fine," Axel whispered, sensing her distress. "It might actually turn out to be a good thing…"

Before Axel could elaborate on what he meant, they were standing in front of the door. He turned to Aila, pulling her hood up over her head.

"I'm going to go in first," he said quietly. "When they're ready for you, they'll call you in. Walk to the center, and then do not speak unless you're spoken to. Answer exactly as we discussed, got it memorized?"

Aila would have laughed at his catch phrase, but at the moment she was a bit preoccupied with feeling like she couldn't breathe. "Yes."

Axel nodded. "See you inside." With that, he vanished into a Dark Portal, presumably reappearing up on one of the chairs inside.

Aila realized that this was the first time she'd been left alone since she'd gotten here. She glanced around, the empty hallway seeming eerily quiet. She took a deep breath, trying to prepare herself for what she was going to do. She was concerned because, as had been pointed out to her by many people, she was not a very convincing liar. This plan rested on her being able to fool the entire Organization into thinking she actually _wanted_ to join them. She was going to have to focus as hard as she could on not giving herself away. She decided that as long as she spoke as little as possible, she could do it.

Probably.

"Gentlemen," she heard Xemnas begin from inside, in his usual grand manner. "I have a very important announcement to make. As of today, we have a new member in our Organization."

She could hear various murmurs coming from inside, many of them sounding very confused. She wondered how many members knew it was going to be her, and how many had been kept in the dark…

"Number XV," Xemnas called from inside the room, "you may enter."

'Fifteen?' Aila thought, confused. Hadn't there only ever been thirteen members…? She shook off her confusion for the moment and instead took a deep breath, bracing herself before stepping into the room.

She did exactly as Axel had said, walking to the center of the room and then stopping. The Organization members whispered around her, many of them seeming to wonder who this new member was.

"Hang on a moment," Xaldin said, eyeing the girl suspiciously. "I can hear a heartbeat."

"As can I," said Luxord.

"Naturally," Xemnas said nonchalantly. "Our newest member is not like us, but has been brought over from the Realm of the Light." He smiled down at the girl. "Show everyone who you are, child."

Aila assumed this meant removing her hood. As she pushed it back, she heard various reactions from the other members, most of them negative.

"The girl?!" Xaldin exclaimed.

"Wait, she's _joining_ the Organization?" Xigbar scoffed. "I thought we were just keeping her as our prisoner?"

"Xemnas, what is the meaning of this?" Luxord asked their leader.

Xemnas put up his hands, signaling that they should be silent. Aila was focusing as hard as she could on keeping her breathing calm and steady, which in turn was keeping her heart rate from going out of control. It had sped up a bit, but no one seemed to notice over the confusion.

"She will be an asset to our Organization," Xemnas stated. When the others attempted to speak, he put up a hand once again. "Turning her into a Nobody would merely hinder the skills that she is able to offer."

"What skills?" Xaldin asked skeptically. "I have yet to see any from her." Aila scowled, but kept her mouth shut.

"All will be revealed in due time." Xemnas said with a small twinkle in his eye. "My friends, have I ever led you astray before? Do you question my decisions?" he asked dangerously, almost daring someone to answer him. No one did, though none of them besides Saïx seemed particularly satisfied. "Now then, let us proceed, yes?" He looked down at Aila. "Number XV, do you accept your position in our Organization?"

Aila took a deep breath. "I do."

"Do you pledge your loyalty to us, and to our cause?"

"I do."

"All of your actions will be for the benefit of the Organization. Betrayal will not be tolerated, under any circumstances, and the punishment for such betrayal is termination." Xemnas was very stern. "Do you accept these terms?"

Aila closed her eyes, exhaling slowly before meeting Xemnas's gaze, trying her best to exude confidence. "I do."

Xemnas smiled, his teeth seeming pointed and dangerous as he did so.

"Welcome to the Organization."

* * *

I will say, this is not originally where this story was intended to go; it kind of took on a life of its own, so I'm trusting the characters to do their thing. Things did have to happen this way in order for me to introduce some important plot points, so I'm actually glad that I didn't go with my original plan; hopefully this chapter didn't anger too many people! But, if it did, sorry about that. I promise I have a plan!

Again, writing the Organization is difficult for me since I haven't played Days, but hopefully I'm keeping their personalities somewhat accurate. Feel free to yell at me if I screwed up your favorite person (sorry if I did!).

Please let me know what you think so far! I'm hoping to get a couple more chapters out in the next few weeks. Feedback is greatly appreciated!

Thanks for reading!

~FP


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